When faced with racist policies, colleges and cities in Kansas and U.S. choose betrayal over bravery

Erica Andrade, president and CEO of El Centro, speaks at a 2024 event. (Tim Carpenter/Kansas Reflector)

The reinterpretation of the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 by the current administration is not just another policy shift buried in bureaucratic jargon. It is a betrayal — a betrayal of immigrants, a betrayal of communities of color and, perhaps most corrosively, a betrayal of the very institutions and organizations that once claimed to uphold diversity, equity and inclusion as core values.

The new guidance makes clear that immigrants, regardless of how deeply rooted they are in our communities, will face new barriers to education, resources and opportunity. It has led public institutions such as Johnson County Community College and Kansas City, Kansas, Community College to announce they will begin requiring immigration documents for enrollment in certain programs. These are the same institutions that, less than a year ago, proudly advertised their campuses as “welcoming to all” and wove DEI principles into their mission statements.

That those commitments could unravel so quickly should alarm us all.

It forces us to ask hard questions: Were those values ever authentic? Or were they convenient talking points — easy to put in glossy brochures when it cost nothing, but discarded the moment political pressure mounted? The rapid retreat suggests that for many institutions, DEI was never a true pillar, but a facade.

This betrayal isn’t confined to higher education. Cities and municipalities across the country, once eager to celebrate diversity and enact inclusive ordinances, are now preemptively dismantling programs meant to serve immigrants and other marginalized groups. These actions are framed as compliance with federal shifts, but in truth, they represent a cowardly eagerness to align with racist values rather than defend the humanity of all residents.

The hypocrisy stings all the more because it undermines the very communities that sustain our cities and colleges. Immigrants and communities of color are not peripheral contributors — they are central to our economic prosperity, our culture and the very idea of America as a thriving, pluralistic society. The erasure of their access to education and opportunity not only weakens individuals but hollows out the collective strength of our communities.

The question is not only how such betrayals will harm us now, but also what happens when this dark chapter eventually ends. Because history teaches us that it will end. Extremist policies never stand forever. But when we emerge from this moment, how will institutions rebuild trust with the people they so callously abandoned? Will communities of color and immigrant families forgive and return to schools, organizations and cities that once shut their doors in their faces? Should they?

Repair will not come easily. Trust cannot simply be declared restored; it must be earned back through courage, consistency and action. Institutions will have to prove — through policy, not platitudes — that they are willing to stand up for the very people they once excluded. Communities will rightfully be wary of shallow gestures.

In the meantime, silence is not an option. It is up to us — residents, students, educators, advocates, neighbors — to use our voices and demand accountability. We must make clear that these harmful actions are not reflective of the values of our communities. We know what builds healthy, prosperous communities: opportunity for all, regardless of immigration status. When people are able to learn, work, and live without fear, entire neighborhoods flourish. That truth does not change with the tides of political power.

This is not the time for cowardice. It is the time for leaders, especially in education and local government, to double down and prove their values are more than marketing slogans. It is the time to resist policies that divide, to stand up for the people who enrich our campuses, workplaces and neighborhoods, and to insist that diversity and inclusion are not negotiable.

The betrayal we are witnessing is painful and profound. But it is not permanent — if, and only if, enough of us refuse to accept it. The question that hangs in the balance is whether our institutions will continue to bend the knee to racist ideologies, or whether they will summon the courage to live up to their promises. For the sake of our future, the choice is theirs. The responsibility to hold them to it is ours.

Erica Andrade is the president and CEO of El Centro, a nonprofit organization advancing the rights and opportunities of immigrant and Latino communities in Kansas. Through its opinion section, Kansas Reflector works to amplify the voices of people who are affected by public policies or excluded from public debate. Find information, including how to submit your own commentary, here.