Nashville, Tenn. (TN Tribune)–
A Message from the TN Immigrant and Refugee Rights Coalition
We’re more than half way through this year’s legislative session and we’ve been able to accomplish so much over the last few weeks. Together, we’ve already put a stop to five bills directly targeting immigrant communities. Thank you for standing with us and helping power our movement.
Emails and calls aren’t the only way we’ve been working to move legislators to stand with immigrant and refugee communities. Over the last two weeks, TIRRC Votes and TIRRC members mobilized to our state capitol to advocate against bills that harm our communities.
This is why we do this work. Together, we are creating a Tennessee where immigrants and refugees can belong and call home. Together, we are showing our political power exists all year round, not just during elections.
- HB1648 (Griffey) / SB2597 (Hensley): This bill sought to allow local public schools and public charter schools in Tennessee to discriminate based on immigration status and for funding to be withheld from public schools that enroll Tennessee students who are undocumented.
- HB1994 (Griffey) / SB2636 (Niceley): Uproots and displaces undocumented TN families to the hometowns of Democratic leadership (Biden, Harris, Pelosi, etc.).
- HB1919 (Rudd) / HB1878 (Bowling): Prevents children from reunification with loved ones and instead punishes families and agencies for trying to provide loving and safe homes.
- HB2310 (Griffey) / SB2023 (Hensley): Aims to tax immigrants for sending money to help their families by imposing a fee on money transfers originating from Tennessee to a location outside of the United States.
This is why we do this work. Together, we are creating a Tennessee where immigrants and refugees can belong and call home. Together, we are showing our political power exists all year round, not just during elections. Together, we are building a state where we can all thrive.While we’ve stopped some heinous bills from passing, our efforts don’t stop there. We still have work to do. Will you join us in urging your legislator to vote no on the remaining anti-immigrant bills?
