Having a care for the stranger
The debate in the United States over immigration and the status of people in this country illegally is ugly and growing uglier. President Donald Trump, a favorite of evangelical Christians despite seldom setting foot inside a church, seems to have missed the biblical passages instructing mankind to be kind to refugees and strangers among them. Perhaps Trump could have one of his faith advisers read the Bible with him, pray with him and attempt to help him absorb God’s teachings. It would be a perfect way to pass time this Easter Sunday.
Take this passage from Leviticus 19:33-34: “When the alien resides with you in your land, you shall not oppress the alien. The alien who resides with you shall be to you as the citizen among you; you shall love the alien as yourself, for you were aliens in the land of Egypt.”
Or, read the words of Matthew 25:35, which famously says, “For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me.”
These are words to reflect upon, not just for Easter Sunday but every day. Be kind to the refugee, the alien, the stranger. This advice is not to say a country cannot or should not protect its borders. It simply says that human beings should offer shelter and care to the strangers among them. (And, yes, there is disagreement over exactly what “alien” means in the Old Testament and whether an alien in a country with permission is more welcome than the dreaded foreigner in a nation without sanction, breaking the law.)
Of course, the Bible is not the chief guide for secular law; we offer these passages more as food for thought in this contentious debate than as a basis for policy. Soon, many of us will be asked to make choices, though, since it is clear that the Trump administration will keep cracking down on immigrants here illegally and work to restrict legal immigration further. Even the U.S. census is adding a question about citizenship, something that seems reasonable but actually could depress responses and undercount people, including Hispanics.
Now it’s time to decide how to fight back against the administration’s nativist, ugly and expensive (no to the border wall) immigration policy. Questions to be asked and answered: What will we do to protect the stranger among us? Are we willing to make sacrifices for that stranger? What kind of country do we aspire to be?
Recently, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services even changed its mission statement.
Originally, the statement began, “USCIS secures America’s promise as a nation of immigrants. …”
It now reads, “U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services administers the nation’s lawful immigration system. …”
The change is clear, moving from an emphasis on America’s promise to one focusing on a system and laws — many of which, we hardly have to remind you, are unfair and weighted against those most in need of a new place to live.
Santa Fe is a self-declared sanctuary city, a place uninterested in turning people over to immigration authorities despite increasing pressure from the federal government. The state of California, after all, is being sued for its sanctuary policies, and cities like Santa Fe have been threatened with loss of federal funding. The pressure will only grow.
New Mayor Alan Webber has reiterated the city’s position, with City Manager Brian Snyder sending out a memo from the mayor reminding all workers of the ordinance protecting immigrants. It’s a welcome reminder of just what is expected of city employees. Here’s how the memo opens: “The City of Santa Fe has declared our city as a city of refuge for immigrants and refugees. We have resolved that, to the extent legally possible, the city, its agents, agencies, officers and employees in the performance of their official duties shall not assist or voluntarily cooperate with Immigration and Naturalization Service investigations or arrest procedures and that no municipal resources will be used to identify or apprehend any non-citizen on the sole basis of immigration status, unless otherwise lawfully required to do so.”
That leaves city employees to do their jobs, while immigration enforcers do theirs. Residents do not have to be afraid to call the police or emergency responders because of their residency status, and all workers do not have to feel like they have become part of the immigration police.
Enforcing immigration laws is a federal responsibility, and this memo helps make clear what lines the city won’t cross. Especially important for employees is the instruction that if approached, they should direct any federal agent or representative to the office of the city attorney.
What useful information: “You are not required to provide any information; our city attorney will handle the matter.”
Yes, leave answering the federal authorities to the city attorney. Leave enforcement to federal agents or officers. Leave the people of Santa Fe to help maintain our standing as a city of refuge. We are on the right side of history.