A plea for human dignity in fair tuition for undocumented students
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As Tennessee policymakers consider legislation to provide in-state tuition for undocumented students, they must stop and consider the humanity of the people whose lives will be most affected.
The Bible reminds us that we have a responsibility to be kind to one another – that despite our differences we are all created in God’s image and deserving of dignity and respect.
The Bible also implores us to care for the most vulnerable among us and to defend the oppressed and take up the cause of the fatherless.
This doesn’t mean Scripture tells us which specific policy proposals should pass the legislature or which policies should be approved for state government. But the Bible does tell us who to care about: each other.
Tennessee is home to more than 25,000 undocumented students – children and young adults who have lived in this state for most of their lives. Their families are our neighbors, and their sisters and brothers are our children’s friends and peers.
These students have been raised in Tennessee and are part of the fabric of our communities. For many, life in the Volunteer State is all they have ever known. They have been educated in our K-12 schools, attended our churches and houses of worship, and played on our playgrounds and parks.
Why would we not allow these students the same opportunity to pursue higher education that every other Tennessean enjoys?
Today, undocumented students who graduate from Tennessee high schools are forced to pay out-of-state tuition to attend our state colleges and universities. That’s about three times the cost of in-state tuition, a price tag that is prohibitive to many.
A growing number of Tennesseans know this is unacceptable and agree all our students deserve a fair chance to go to college. Polls indicate nearly 75 percent of Tennesseans support in-state tuition for undocumented students.
The Bible doesn’t tell us much about which bills to pass, and it certainly doesn’t tell us how much tuition should cost. But it does remind us not to turn our backs on each other, and to treat one another with compassion. The Bible tells us to do what’s right.
As policymakers consider legislation to provide in-state tuition to all Tennessee high school graduates, I urge them to remember our shared responsibility to uphold human dignity and approve Senate Bill 2263/ House Bill 2429.
Daniel Darling is the vice president for communications at the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission.
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