The Teachers Association of Anne Arundel County wholeheartedly joins in solidarity with immigrant educators, students, and their families. We value immigrants as positive members of our schools, families, and neighborhoods and appreciate their contributions to building a strong, healthy community and economy. As educators, we strive to create welcoming and supportive school communities, and we understand the history of our country has been substantially shaped by immigrants. Whether the families we serve have lived here for generations, were forced to immigrate or migrate, or have recently moved here for more opportunity, our goal is to provide every student with the skills necessary to become lifelong learners and productive members of society. Our support extends beyond the boundaries of our school campuses and pours into the homes of the children who walk through our doors, including those of immigrant families, both documented and undocumented.
We affirm the values expressed by Thomas Jefferson in the Declaration of Independence that all people are created equal and that life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness are inalienable rights based on personhood and not on country of national origin. Any attempt to deny immigrants these rights is fundamentally anti-American. It is our patriotic duty to stand against any attempt to enshrine jingoistic fearmongering and xenophobia into public policy and law. In the land of the free and the home of the brave, our immigrant siblings who came to this country yearning to breathe free should not have to face being harassed or threatened by deportation. Our immigrant siblings are drawn to our shores by the light of liberty and the promise of a better tomorrow. They should not have to live with the fear of being torn from their friends, community, and even possibly their family members. None of our students should have to worry that their education will be cut short nor wonder if their parents or guardians will be home when they return from school. Likewise, none of our colleagues should have to worry that the lives they have established here will be disrupted by being deported.
We pledge ourselves as allies to our immigrant communities, especially those in our schools whom we serve and with whom we work. We also urge the Anne Arundel County Board of Education, County Council, and the Maryland General Assembly to set forth policies that will strengthen the protections and support for our immigrant community members who are now even more under threat.
