Dear TC Community,

As a community dedicated to advancing education along with the physical and mental wellbeing of all people, we cannot help but feel deeply concerned and distressed by the recent parental separations and continued detention of more than 2,300 migrant children at the U.S. border in Texas, not to mention the ongoing lack of clarity for emigrating families seeking asylum in the U.S.

We endorse the public statements of academic, medical, and public health organizations, including the National Academy of Education and the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 

We also recognize the intensity and urgency of a humanitarian crisis unfolding not just within our borders, but right here in New York City, where at least 239 migrant children have been relocated. For those who wish to support efforts to provide humanitarian and legal assistance to affected families, we are sharing links to resources and organizations that we compiled this afternoon, starting with a list of organizations published by the Texas Tribune.

Here is information on other resources:

• A consortium of the Catholic Legal Immigration Network, the American Immigration Council, the Refugee and Immigrant Center for Education and Legal Services, and the American Immigration Lawyers Association— collectively known as CARA, joined forces in response to Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) significant expansion of its family detention capacity.
  
  
• The Refugee and Immigrant Center for Education and Legal Services (RAICES) is the largest immigration nonprofit in Texas offering free and low-cost legal services to immigrant children and families.  In 2017, RAICES staff closed 51,000 cases providing legal advocacy and representation in an immigration system that breaks apart families and leaves millions without pathways to legal status.
  
  
• The ACLU Immigrants’ Rights Project works to expand and enforce the civil liberties and civil rights of immigrants using targeted impact litigation, advocacy, and public outreach, focusing on challenging laws that deny immigrants access to the courts and impose indefinite and mandatory detention.
  
  
• Established in 1979, the National Immigration Law Center (NILC) is dedicated to defending and advancing the rights and opportunities of low-income immigrants and their families. Over the past 34 years, NILC has won landmark legal decisions protecting fundamental rights, thwarted policies that would have devastated the well-being of low-income immigrants and their family members, and advanced policies that reinforce and promote equality, opportunity, and justice for all.
  
  
• The resources of the Charity Navigator site are available to anyone who wishes to learn more about a charity to which they are considering donating.
    
• Charity Navigator has developed an objective, numbers-based rating system to assess many of America's best-known and some lesser known, but worthy, charities. Charity Navigator maintains a list of rated charitable organizations providing services to immigrants and refugees.

President Susan Fuhrman                              Provost Tom James