A Putnam County group protesting immigration enforcement is calling on a Mahopac school board member to step down, claiming he has been involved in ICE arrests in neighboring communities.
On the Mahopac Board of Education website, Christopher Harrigan lists volunteer work and his nearly 20 years in law enforcement. Specifically, Harrigan is a deportation officer for ICE.
Mahopac School Board member Christopher Harrigan said he will not resign and the board has not asked him to resign.
“The Board of Education supports Trustee Chris Harrigan and will not accept his removal,” said Michael Mongon, president of the Mahopac Central School District Board of Education.
Some residents have been calling for his deportation — Harrigan is a deportation officer for ICE.
At Thursday’s school board meeting, some of those residents expressed their unease, saying his day job presented a conflict of interest.
“How do you stay safe when you have one of your own working for an organization that terrorizes children and families?” said Mahopac resident Laura Ferrelli.
“We cannot have one person on our school board who is responsible for this kind of fear,” Byria Lemonik added.
However, they were outnumbered and even heckled.
“Don’t use obscene language, don’t use defamatory remarks, come on,” Mongon said.
The board even took a break after asking both sides to calm down.
“I’m not surprised that the most vocal and hateful people are the people on the board who support ICE agents,” Mahopac resident Laura Ferrelli said.
“Trustees’ careers outside of district responsibilities should not be used as a weapon against them,” said Mahopac resident Kate Bellantoni.
The support was cheered.
Putnam County Legislator Erin Crowley said Harrigan is not someone parents should fear.
“People are not coming into your schools and the kids are safe. That’s not happening. If you’re here under an executive order that’s illegal, then I’m sorry, you committed a crime,” Crowley said.
Most who spoke at the tense meeting praised Harrigan’s work and record as a school board trustee, as well as the board’s support of him. They also noted that some of his opponents did not live in the community.
The board noted that he had been duly elected and said his employment did not disqualify him.
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