Royal Oak A ‘Welcoming City’ For Immigrants, Refugees

ROYAL OAK, MI — As tensions over immigrants and refugees boil over nationally, Royal Oak city officials turned the temperature down Monday with a resolution establishing the city as a “Welcoming City.” The measure affirms the city as “a place where all foreign-born and native-born Americans can live, work, and play together, share in each other’s customs and ideals, and appreciate and promote cultural diversity.”

“This is an important step for Royal Oak to take,” Carol Schwanger, the city’s contact for Welcoming Michigan, told Patch. “It sends a positive signal. In the rush to stereotype people, it’s going to take education to disavow those stereotypes. In America, we’re all Americans, and we don’t have to all be alike to fit in our society.”

One important distinction, Schwanger said, is that the action doesn’t mean Royal Oak is a “sanctuary city” and federal funding isn’t in jeopardy. In January, President Trump signed an executive order that cracks down on sanctuary cities that shield undocumented immigrants. The order came with the implicit threat that the federal government would withhold federal funds to those local governments that offer sanctuary to illegal immigrants.

“This does not put our residents in danger,” Schwanger said. “We’re not a sanctuary city that would jeopardize federal funding.”

Davids said the city’s primary immigrant groups are from Canada, Iraq and Albania, according to a recent city survey.

The affirmative statement by the city is intended to convey the message to residents that the city will be “innovative in the ways we work to create welcoming atmosphere,” Davids said.

Here is the resolution approved Monday:

Welcoming City Resolution

Whereas, the City of Royal Oak believes in the innate dignity of all people; and Whereas, The City of Royal Oak acknowledges, honors, and values our immigrant and migrant roots, and embraces the values of family, faith, and hard work; and

Whereas, the City of Royal Oak celebrates diversity and recognizes that invaluable contributions to our social, religious, cultural, and economic landscape have come from a wide variety of racial and ethnic backgrounds; and

Whereas, the City of Royal Oak, and the southeastern Michigan region as a whole, has long been home to immigrants from around the world, who come seeking opportunity, stability, prosperity, and a better life for their families; and

Whereas, the City of Royal Oak has long been recognized as a hospitable and welcoming place, where people, families, and institutions thrive and the contributions of all are celebrated and valued; and

Whereas, as evidenced by our publicly supported human rights ordinance, the City of Royal Oak is committed to being a diverse, inclusive, and global city; and

Whereas, recent events on the national stage demand that people and communities of conscience speak out in defense of, and reaffirm their commitment to, this most basic American value; and

Whereas, the City of Royal Oak will continue to provide a neighborly and welcoming atmosphere, where all are respected and accepted; and

Whereas, the Welcoming Royal Oak initiative aims to build cooperation, respect, and compassion among all in our city, including immigrants and non-immigrants alike; endeavors to create an atmosphere in which immigrants and refugees have increased opportunities to integrate into the social fabric of their adopted hometowns; and seeks to embrace diversity while supporting and retaining unique cultural identities; and

Whereas, by joining the national Welcoming Cities and Counties initiative the City of Royal Oak commits to institutionalizing welcoming efforts through the adoption of policies and/or practices that promote inclusion within local government and the broader community.

Now therefore be it resolved, by the Royal Oak City Commission, on February 13, 2017, that the City of Royal Oak is affirmed as a place where all foreign-born and native-born Americans can live, work, and play together, share in each other’s customs and ideals, and appreciate and promote cultural diversity.

The state and a growing list of counties and cities are part of the Welcoming America Initiative, based on the belief that communities are stronger when everyone feels welcome and valued, including immigrants and refugees. Members are cities, counties and organizations.

Other Michigan members of the Welcoming America network include the communities of Ann Arbor, Battle Creek, Clinton Township, Detroit, East Lansing, Hamtramck, Lansing, Meridian, Sterling Heights and West Bloomfield; the counties of Macomb and Kalamazoo; and the Michigan Office for New Americans.

More on the Welcoming America initiative is found here. More on Welcoming Michigan is found here.

Photo by Jason Bachman via Flickr Commons