Rooms in Towson University’s University Union were full of academics, activists, service providers, government workers and others — many of whom are immigrants or refugees — who were eager to share and learn about the current state of immigration in the Baltimore region on Friday, May 30, 2025. They had gathered for the 12th Baltimore Immigration Summit, to focus on this year’s theme of “Baltimore United: Solidarity and Action in Uncertain Times.” There was excitement in the air, as well as no small amount of frustration and anger at the current state of immigration policy and enforcement. Almost three hundred attendees joined us to discuss the contributions of those who were born elsewhere, but now call Baltimore City and Baltimore County home, as well as the challenges they are facing.
The Baltimore Immigration Summit brings together this varied group of people for a free one-day conference to focus on immigration in the Baltimore region. This event is a collaboration among TU, Baltimore City, Baltimore County and other community partners, and has now been going strong for 21 years. Among our sponsors, BTU (Baltimore + Towson University) has been a steadfast partner for this collaboration for many years, and we were grateful once again to get financial, logistic and emotional support from this amazing office.
After welcoming remarks from TU President Mark Ginsberg, the day started strong with a plenary panel on “Hot Topics in Immigration Law and Policy: Local Impact of National Action,” which included legal experts from University of Baltimore and University of Maryland Law Schools, the Amica Center for Immigrant Rights and the American Bar Association. Breakout sessions throughout the day delved into topics including detention, helping immigrant survivors of abuse, refugee resettlement, data about local immigrants, Muslim immigrants and refugees, health issues, language access, the arts, multilingual students and families in our schools, housing programs and economic empowerment.
During lunch, attendees heard from a plenary panel on “A Whole Government Response: The Key Role of Cities, Counties, and States in Protecting Immigrant Residents.” This panel included top immigrant leaders from the city, county and state level, including Catalina Rodriguez Lima ’16, director of the Baltimore City Mayor’s Office of Immigrant Affairs (MIMA), Giuliana Valencia-Banks, chief of Immigrant Affairs for Baltimore County, and Kamal Essaheb of the Governor’s Office of Immigrant Affairs. The day also included networking and a poster session highlighting sixteen different programs working with and for immigrants and refugees. Finally, the day concluded with an inspiring performance by Gyzelle Garcia, a spoken word artist and singer whose work draws on her roots in Colombia, Honduras and Hispaniola.
While basking in the glow of our most successful summit yet, the following week found myself and Masuma Lonczak, deputy director of MIMA, making a site visit to Morgan State University to begin planning for the 13th Baltimore Immigration Summit, which will take place there on June 5, 2026. Now, more than ever, this is an extremely important issue, and the event becomes more and more significant and impactful with changes coming from the federal level on an almost-daily basis. This event allows for not only education, but also collaboration borne from networking that takes place during the Summit. We look forward to continued iterations in the years to come.
