IndigenousNetwork was able to attend a recent briefing hosted by American Community Media featuring California Superintendent of Public Instruction TONY THURMAND who is currently running for governor of California. The conversation focused heavily on immigration, healthcare, housing affordability, and economic inequality. Immigration quickly became the center of the discussion, with Thurmond taking one of the most aggressive positions in the current governor’s race, repeatedly calling for the abolition of ICE and for California to directly resist federal immigration enforcement policies.
The briefing comes at a moment when immigration politics in California are increasingly tied to labor shortages, detention center expansion, deportation raids, and rising tensions between state and federal authority. Throughout the discussion, Thurmond consistently framed immigration through labor, economics, and human rights. He repeatedly referenced the role undocumented immigrants play in agriculture, childcare, hospitality, healthcare, and construction, arguing that current federal policy is destabilizing industries that California depends on.
Opening the briefing, Thurmond grounded much of his campaign message in his own upbringing. Born in California to a Panamanian immigrant mother and a father from Detroit who served in Vietnam, he described growing up in poverty after losing his mother to cancer at age six. “We used free lunches, food stamps, and government cheese and other forms of public assistance to manage,” he said. He described education and public assistance programs as the reason he was later able to become a social worker, legislator, and eventually state superintendent.
Moderator Pilar Marrero quickly shifted the conversation toward immigration enforcement, asking whether Thurmond supported abolishing ICE.
“I was the first candidate to call for abolishing ICE,” Thurmond responded. He argued that the agency no longer reflects its original stated purpose. “ICE was supposed to be a way to keep us safe,” he said. “But who are they keeping us safe from?”
Much of Thurmond’s immigration platform focused on detention centers and private prison corporations operating in California. He repeatedly referenced companies like GEO Group and CoreCivic, arguing that immigration detention has become financially incentivized.
“The whole purpose behind President Trump’s dangerous and reckless immigration policy is to help his friends make money like Core Civic and GEO,” Thurmond said later in the briefing.
He discussed legislation he is currently sponsoring that would impose a 50% tax on companies operating ICE detention facilities in California. According to Thurmond, CoreCivic has already warned investors that the proposal could force them to leave the state. “Good,” he said. “Good riddance. We don’t want you here.”
At several points, Thurmond suggested California should take a far more confrontational approach toward federal immigration enforcement. He stated that ICE agents who violate California law should face prosecution within the state. “If you break California laws, you will be arrested,” he said.
For immigrant communities across California, especially those already experiencing fear around raids and detention expansion, many of the discussion points reflected issues already dominating local organizing and ethnic media reporting. Thurmond repeatedly referenced legislation aimed at keeping ICE away from schools and hospitals. He said California school districts have been trained not to admit ICE agents onto campuses without proper legal documentation.
The conversation also moved into undocumented students and public education after questions emerged about proposals in several states seeking to block undocumented children from attending public schools. Thurmond argued California should continue protecting access to education regardless of immigration status.
“My read of the Constitution is that it guarantees the right to an education for all children, including undocumented children,” he said.
He then proposed expanding educational access even further by allowing students living near the California-Mexico border to attend California schools and community colleges. Thurmond argued the policy could help school districts struggling with declining enrollment while also strengthening California’s future workforce.
Healthcare became another major subject during the briefing. Thurmond strongly endorsed single-payer healthcare and sharply criticized federal healthcare cuts tied to HR1, which he referred to as “the big ugly bill.” He connected the issue personally to the death of his brother, who lost access to healthcare after losing his insurance. “No person should lose their life simply because they don’t have health insurance,” he said.
Affordability and housing formed another major part of his campaign pitch. Thurmond repeatedly returned to taxing billionaires as a way to fund healthcare, schools, housing programs, and direct tax credits for working Californians. “We can’t tax working people anymore,” he said several times throughout the discussion.
He proposed building two million housing units by 2030, much of it on surplus land owned by California school districts. He also endorsed statewide rent control expansion, first-time homebuyer assistance, and penalties targeting large corporations holding vacant property for speculative purposes. “We are experiencing a crisis of supply and demand,” Thurmond said.
At multiple points, the conversation circled back to economic inequality and wealth concentration in California. Thurmond endorsed a state wealth tax targeting individuals with more than $150 million in assets while also calling for a coordinated federal wealth tax supported by Congress. He argued California cannot continue placing more financial pressure on middle-class residents while wealth continues concentrating at the top.
The final section of the briefing focused on the governor’s race itself. Thurmond has struggled in recent polling and failed to qualify for a major televised debate. When asked whether he should leave the race, he dismissed the idea entirely.
“Polls elect no one. People do,” he said.
He pointed to previous elections where he was heavily outspent and underestimated before winning statewide office. He also emphasized that his campaign priorities differ sharply from many of the better-funded candidates currently leading the race. Near the end of the discussion, Thurmond said, “This is the last office I’m ever going to run for.”
Whether his campaign gains traction remains uncertain. But the briefing made clear that Thurmond is attempting to push California politics toward a much more confrontational position on immigration enforcement, detention centers, and wealth inequality. His campaign is openly arguing for stronger state resistance to federal immigration policy while tying immigration directly to labor, housing, healthcare, and economic survival in California itself.
