March 28, 2025
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
PRESS STATEMENT
CONTACT media@aprnetwork.org
NASHVILLE –– This week, American Pride Rises (APR) launched the Defending Our Dreams college tour in Nashville. APR partnered with campus organizations at Vanderbilt University, Tennessee State University and Fisk University to empower students, faculty and staff with the tools and resources they need to protect opportunity for all by defending diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI).
“It’s our responsibility to have these conversations with people who don’t know about equitable resources and why we need them,” said Kenny Goodman, a student leader at Vanderbilt University. “The more we keep having these conversations and rallying together to make sure everyone is aware of how DEI can impact everyone, the stronger we will be together.”
“When we take initiative, we aren’t only doing it for ourselves. We’re doing it for those after us, and that’s why this is so important,” said Lauren Caver, Student at Tennessee State University and an APR Defending Our Dreams Student Fellow. “We want future generations to have access. This is about selflessness – not selfishness. That’s true leadership.”
“I’ve had the privilege of taking part in a lot of DEI programs and wouldn’t be where I am today without them,” said Roberts Adams, Student at Fisk University. “By getting rid of these opportunities, you’re directly trying to get rid of equality, which we’ve worked so hard to achieve”
The Defending Our Dreams college tour is designed to engage directly with campus communities at colleges and universities across the nation to advance inclusive policies and protect the values that make higher education a transformative experience for all. As opponents of progress baselessly attack higher education and DEI, this tour seeks to ensure that all students, no matter their background or zip code, are able to build their own American Dream — no exceptions.
About American Pride Rises:
American Pride Rises (APR) is an initiative committed to protecting pathways to the American Dream by fighting for a more diverse, equitable, and inclusive America for all.