Billings Alliance for Immigrant Rights Says: DON’T CHARGE RICK TOLEDO! ICE OUT OF EVERYWHERE!
The Billings Alliance for Immigrant Rights stands in firm solidarity with Rick Toledo, a graduate student and a leader of the Students for a Democratic Society chapter (SDS) at Cal Poly Humboldt (CPH). On March 6th, Toledo was arrested for his role in a sit-in protest in solidarity with Palestine a week prior. The protest also called for a declaration of a sanctuary campus where immigrant students could be safe from ICE terror and kidnapping.
Toledo was in jail for two days and released after posting $25,000 bail, but the repression continued. On March 19th, the University Police Department returned to Toledo’s apartment with a warrant to take his electronics, including his laptop, cell phone, and digital camera.
Because of the arrest and these trumped-up allegations, Toledo was suspended from classes and lost his job at the university as a teacher’s aide. This has brought financial hardship as Toledo stated he was already living paycheck-to-paycheck.
Toledo has yet to be officially charged but the state will attempt to charge him with “battery, assault, conspiracy and false imprisonment," at his arraignment on April 20th. These charges carry up to a 14-year sentence in state prison. Toledo stated that administrators felt someone had to be made an example of, and he was easily identifiable as a leader of the student movement.
This type of repression is growing more common under the Trump administration. Activists who stand up for immigrants and against the genocide in Gaza are being doxxed, arrested, brutalized, or worse. We must take a stand against this repression wherever it happens!
Show your support for Rick Toledo by signing onto the letter demanding: No Charges on Rick Toledo!
And donate to his legal fund!
chuffed.org/project/172807-rick-toledo-legal-defense-fund
