Immigration summit highlights a welcoming Baltimore

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This year’s Baltimore Immigration Summit drew some 300 attendees to the campus of Morgan State University in early June. The summit, which draws upon the expertise of faculty and staff at Morgan State and Towson University, is also a collaboration between Baltimore City and Baltimore County governments. Specifically, it involves the commitment and resources of the Mayor’s Office of Immigrant Affairs and the Baltimore County Office of Immigrant Affairs.

I’ve been attending these summits over the years because in my former consulting career I had the opportunity to meet with and gain some insights regarding the experiences and challenges facing immigrant and refugee communities, not only in Baltimore but in Atlanta, Buffalo and other locations. I have seen the potential for these newcomers (in Buffalo, they were referred to as New Americans) to bring new life to older neighborhoods, bring new energy into struggling local economies, and share their customs, cuisines and capabilities with the established folks who have been here for a while longer.

This year’s summit was given the theme of “Harbors and Bridges: Holding Ground and Uniting Communities.” Implicit in those words were the dueling arguments that I heard in the breakout groups and the plenary sessions that I attended. On the one hand, there are stories of striving, of opportunities to be realized, of successes in business or careers.
These include the ability to gain access to services, to gain fluency in English, perhaps even to secure a loan to start a business or to make progress in achieving new skills.

We learned, for example, that the group Global Refuge has partnered with New American Lending to provide critical capital to immigrant entrepreneurs. By way of examples, Kendra R. Hernandez, with Global Refuge (formerly known as Lutheran Immigrant and Refugee Service), shared some videos that I was able to view following the summit.

In one, I learned about Khalis, proprietor of an ethnic restaurant and café, where the owner is “proud to bring authentic flavors and magical aromas of Afghanistan to your table.” He in turn asks his patrons to “help us to help newly arrived refugees.”

A second video featured Rezan who, as a young man, developed his talents as a tailor in his native Afghanistan. He retained those skills as he eventually made his way to the U.S., where he is now recognized as the best tailor in his community and has the plaque to prove it.

On the other hand, there is the reality since 2025 that these plans for advancement could be derailed at any moment, as a result of actions taken by agents of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Potential arrests at sensitive locations, be they schools, churches, playgrounds or childcare centers, have generated fear throughout the immigrant community. These fears manifest themselves in students being reluctant to attend school, afraid they will not find their parents at home on their return. Or, in shoppers not making their way in the usual numbers to the various commercial establishments along the Eastern Avenue corridor in Baltimore’s Highlandtown neighborhood. Indeed, we learned that an annual hiring fair could not be held in person this year, “due to the state of the world.”

During the afternoon plenary session, Melissa Bertolo, representing Welcoming America, a national network of communities advancing the prospects of immigrants, was met on stage by Catalina Rodriguez Lima, the director of MIMA. Rodriguez Lima was presented with the official recertification of Baltimore City as a welcoming community. Actions by the city to receive this recertification, in addition to having the well-established Mayor’s Office of Immigrant Affairs, include the city’s historic $2 million investment in support of immigrant families in 2025. Baltimore, across city agencies, has been able to demonstrate its commitment to the well-being of its immigrant residents.

Staying positive about matters in these challenging times, we should heed these words from Welcoming America:

“Strong communities are ones that connect and include people of all backgrounds. By doing so, communities–and those who live there–will meet their highest civic and economic potential. As places look to harness the vibrancy that comes from diverse talent and a more global workforce, welcoming and inclusive communities will set themselves apart.”

Joe Nathanson is the retired principal of Urban Information Associates, a Baltimore-based economic and community development consulting firm. Since 2001, he has written a monthly column for The Daily Record and can be contacted at [email protected].