Humble Beginnings:

After the DACA program ended in 2017, immigrants rights organizations took to the streets in Detroit to demand the program be reinstated and that pathways to citizenship be expanded.

During this time, we saw all sorts of communities -- faith communities, labor unions, various activist communities -- come together alongside the undocumented community to fight against this act of white supremacy.

Throughout this time of organizing, coalition-building, and direct action, there was a clear lack of organized presence among educators in Detroit. However, for educators in immigrant communities in Detroit, the decision to end DACA had a devastating impact on our students. Undocumented students who weren't yet old enough to apply lost their chance at any protection from deportation, and undocumented students with DACA suddenly lost the little sense of safety and security they had. Undocumented educators who had DACA were also in a position of insecurity, fear, and uncertainty, all while having to continue showing up for their students in the classroom each day.

We knew that educators had to organize to fight for and alongside our undocumented students & colleagues and their families. We also knew that we needed to show up in more than just the streets. We needed to show up in our classrooms. Too many educators were ignoring these attacks against the undocumented community, continuing on with standards and lessons and assignments, while undocumented students & educators were showing up in our classrooms with fear and trauma.

So, in early 2018, a small group of educators across Detroit got on a phone call to brainstorm how we can and should be showing up in the fight for immigration justice, and how that fight connects deeply to education justice. Our informal calls soon found a rhythm of planning, strategizing, and community-building.

In March 2018, we convened an Immigration Justice Educators Meet-Up, with over 20 teachers and school staff coming together to build relationships and to brainstorm & strategize how the education community needs to show up in the fight for immigration justice.

At the same time, a group of students in southwest Detroit called The Student Action Club, were organizing around the ending of DACA and broader immigration justice issues. In April 2018, The Student Action Club, along with a few of their teachers, organized our next event: A Student Speak-Out. Middle and high school students in southwest Detroit spoke out about how immigration issues connected to their experiences as students and how teachers needed to be supporting their immigrant students in this moment.

For the remainder of the spring and summer of 2018, we continued to build our community of educators, students, and community members commited to organizing at the intersection of education and immigration justice.

Starting in the 2018 - 2019 school year, we officially adapted the name MIStudentsDream. Throughout this school year, we hosted monthly membership potlucks, we built relationships with other community organizations, and we strengthened our capacity to fight for education and immigration justice. To support our organizing work, we formed a core team who is responsible for shaping the direction of our work, leading our campaigns, coordinating events, and building our base. The core team also leads our three committees: Youth Organizing, School Culture, and Higher Education Access.

Today, we continue bringing educators, students, and community members together to imagine and fight for immigration and education justice! We have also joined the 482Forward Network as an action team, to connect our organizing to education justice work happening across the city.

Join us today!

Our Core Team