Everyone–Truly Everyone–Is Welcome Here
July 28, 2025
At the Wassmuth Center for Human Rights, we believe that the truest measure of any law is how well it upholds human dignity. History reminds us that legal systems have too often been used to silence, exclude, and marginalize rather than to protect and uplift. True justice requires moral clarity, ethical courage, and an unwavering commitment to the dignity of all people.
Today, this commitment is being tested.
A recent legal opinion questioned whether the message Everyone is Welcome Here belongs in Idaho schools, challenging the fundamental obligation public schools have to welcome all children. In a troubling reading, four words rooted in kindness and inclusion were treated as suspect, as though welcoming students of all backgrounds is somehow a partisan stance. This isn’t just a flawed interpretation of the law. It’s an attempt to undermine the very values that hold our communities together.
Everyone is Welcome Here is not a political slogan. It is a moral affirmation. It reflects our shared responsibility to create learning spaces where every child feels safe, seen, and valued. To argue otherwise is to invent division where none exists, to politicize compassion, and to erode the foundation of a just society.
This moment reveals a deeper crisis: when legal guidance is politicized, it threatens the integrity of our institutions and the rights of those they are meant to protect. Neutrality in education does not mean silence in the face of exclusion. It means actively ensuring that no student is made to feel invisible or unworthy. When laws are weaponized, even the simplest expressions of decency are put at risk. As a new school year draws near, the chilling effect of this decision will likely leave students feeling less safe and educators afraid. Both of these outcomes are deeply damaging to learning and growth.
At the Wassmuth Center, we know that advancing human rights requires more than resisting injustice. It requires building something better. That means crafting policies rooted in dignity, challenging narratives that divide us, and creating communities where every person belongs. Everyone is Welcome Here is more than a message on a wall. It is an actionable human rights commitment grounded in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and in our moral responsibility to one another.
We stand firmly on this ethical ground. Human dignity cannot be legislated away or sidelined by political rhetoric. Every child and every community member has the right to be welcomed and affirmed in our public spaces. As we face challenges to these enduring truths, we renew our commitment to elevate voices for justice and to build a future where everyone–truly everyone–is welcome.