It is an understatement to say I have differences of opinion with the United States government concerning its current immigration policy and enforcement practices. For the last 11 years and three administrations, I have advocated for an immigration policy rooted in the truth that migration is a human right; a policy that puts the welfare of migrating persons above the sovereignty of nations and the sanctity of territorial borders. Of course, there is no nation in the world that as of today has such an immigration policy. This is regrettable.
The United States could be an exemplar of freedom and liberty, of justice and mercy, if it moved toward a more humane policy of immigration and naturalization. For starters, the nation could acknowledge and accept that the majority of persons seeking entry into this country come from Latin America for reasons of extreme poverty and unemployment causing starvation, and unspeakable violence from gang activity and drug trafficking. The countries from which they have fled have failed to protect their citizens or provide for their welfare. These persons should be welcomed as asylees and/or granted visas to work, along with an eventual path to citizenship or permanent legal status. Yet the U.S. government has long refused to grant visas to residents of those countries in proportion to the demand to enter. And now the government is doubling down and making it much harder for persons in imminent danger to prove their case for asylum. This makes no sense. These people are fleeing a house on fire; their lives are in danger now. They can’t “get in line” and wait 10 or 20 years to be issued a visa that they are unlikely to get. The policy of the U.S. government is to allow as few people as possible to enter the country and begin a path toward legal status. The policy of the U.S. government effectively “makes” undocumented immigrants by depriving all but a few deemed worthy enough to be a part of American society, by merit of education and marketable talents, the privilege to live and work here; and then it criminalizes them for having the temerity to enter or remain in the country without the privilege of said documents. Again, Latin America is a house on fire—women, children, and men have to leave now or die. Do you think they are going to worry about having the right papers to present to officials when at last they enter a safe country?
For a decade I have worked with the New Sanctuary Movement to prevent unjust deportations and oppose the government’s cruel and inhumane system of immigrant detention. Times have only gotten tougher under the present administration, but the same policies have been in play for years, and so has the apparatus of enforcement.
Sorry to go on an editorial tangent today. I imagine that many of you, dear readers, have been focused on current events, namely the federal government’s announcement of immigration enforcement raids in major U.S. cities, including New York, where I live and work. I encourage all of you to volunteer with the New Sanctuary Coalition of NYC. They need people of faith and good will to accompany immigrants in the process of deportation to their mandatory court hearings or check-ins with Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials. The coalition helps undocumented persons apply for asylum at a weekly legal clinic with the help of NYU Law School faculty and other attorneys. It teaches undocumented immigrants their rights and shows immigrant families and communities how to protect themselves. It also works to conscientize the public about the root causes of migration and exposes the inhumanity of the present immigration policy. I believe the God of the Exodus is present in the work of this organization. In the words of the legendary James Brown, I hope that you “get up, get into it, get involved.”
My own conscientization continues. Last Friday, Padre Alejandro and I had a good dialogue on migration from Central America to the United States. Coming up: this Wednesday, the Maryknoll community will focus its weekly conference on life in Central America. This Friday, I will continue my dialogue with Joann, a student from Haiti who has experience in integrating peoples of different cultures into one stronger community.
Postscript: To the Swedish bots out there, I say, knock it off! I know I did not suddenly pick up 100 daily readers in Scandinavia.
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