The Madison Metropolitan School District in Wisconsin has canceled May 1 classes for students to allow for anti-ICE protests.
May Day 2026, celebrated by the school district as “A Day Without Immigrants – A Day for Solidarity, Truth, and Power,” is described as a “powerful demonstration of our solidarity and collective power.”
“Immigrant workers help power the economy, and together we stand to demand respect for our rights, dignity, and humanity,” an announcement for the event reads.
The school district’s statement for the event said its Madison Teachers Inc. (MTI) partners “recently shared that they received 70% of staff signatures supporting participation” in the protest. “After a conversation with MTI, we understand that we may experience low staff turnout and believe this will directly affect the safety of our community due to insufficient supervision and educational support for our students,” the statement says. “Once we were made aware of the anticipated staff absences, we reviewed options and scenarios to best support students and families.” The district concluded that school and after-school care were to be canceled.
MTI said in a press release on the matter that the action aligns with “Voces de la Frontera’s demands and our immigrant communities while calling attention to the state’s failure to live up to its obligations to Wisconsin’s public-school students.”
School will resume on May 4.
Conservative social media account Libs of TikTok shared the district’s message, writing, “Your students are forced to lose out on their education so teachers can be left-wing political activists.”
