As cities and states have started “opening up,” people are left to decide which actions or restraints align with their value system. Many believe that people’s choices are clearly good or bad, right or wrong. In some cases, it’s true that things are black and white. But mostly, there’s a lot of gray.

Today, on my morning run through the streets of my neighborhood, I saw several people working—construction workers, masons, waiters, housekeepers heading to their jobs, landscapers tending to yards. Most of the people I passed on the streets looked like me: Latinos and Latinas. But unlike me, many of the people I saw today can’t eat if they don’t work.

From our students and from my own family stories, I know that many of these workers are undocumented or under-documented and therefore, didn’t receive stimulus checks and can’t apply for Small Business Administration loans or government assistance. For those who aspire to postsecondary education, most cannot receive financial aid or in-state tuition, and are barred from Georgia’s top public institutions.

So, while many of us have the privilege of debating how we live our values during this time, mi gente quietly go to work. As they did before this pandemic and as they’ll continue to do for as long as is necessary.
People without the luxury of good choices also have dreams for their children. And their children, many of them Achieve Atlanta Scholars, have dreams for their lives, too. This message is for them:

Para mis hermanos y hermanas—para Nanci que limpia casas para que sus hijas sigan estudiando; para Eduardo y Alberto que estudian en la Universidad mientras trabajan en tiendas al por menor en las tardes para pagar su matrícula cada semestre; para Clara que se graduó este mes con su Bachillerato; para Luis que, con una debilidad física, labora en el sol todo los días para proveer por su familia; y para las miles de personas que hacen los trabajos esenciales de nuestro país—quiero decirles que veo sus sacrificios y les agradezco la inspiración que me dan todo los días. Me han enseñado come servir con humildad, persistencia y valor. Y nos enseñan a todos que a veces la única opción es no rendirse.

I see you, I appreciate you, and I have learned from you how to serve others with humility, persistence and an unwavering belief that a better life is possible.

Creer. Esperar. Lograr.

Con amor,
Tina