Board of Trustees approves Foothill-De Anza bus line, Murphy takes political stand against travel ban

Terry Pon, Staff Reporter

The Foothill-De Anza Board of Trustees voted unanimously on Feb. 6 to approve the VTA bus line from De Anza to Foothill.

President Brian Murphy also handed out red cards for undocumented students to hand to Immigrations and Customs Enforcement agents.

The original bus line from De Anza to Foothill was cut due to low ridership. It currently takes 90 minutes worth of transfers to go 6.5 miles up Interstate 280 from De Anza to Foothill.

Student Trustee Elias Kamal plans to take their FHDA bus line proposal to the VTA board for approval.

Murphy said the cards were produced in an effort to provide information to immigrant persons if they are approached by members of law enforcement.

“As a son of Muslim refugees,” Kamal said. “It means a lot to see the solidarity, not just between students, but with faculty administration and staff,” Kamal said. Murphy and Kamal expressed their concerns regarding the Trump presidency and the stance De Anza is taking to protect the students.

Murphy opened up the meeting by taking a political stand against the Trump administration’s travel ban. “It’s important for us to take a public stand with regard to the indignities that are being visited upon us by what one can only describe as a white supremacist cabal currently in charge,” Murphy said.

Trump’s executive order ban attempted to restrict travel from seven nations within the Middle East that are predominantly Muslim. “The very nature, in my view, of this community is under assault,” Murphy said.