By Sister Mary Waskowiak
I have spent years working with migrants in Southern California: not criminals, just hardworking people trying to create a better life for their families. It is impossible to describe the anguish they experience when they are ripped away from their families when they appear in immigration court amid the current administration’s cruel crackdown.
These are immigrants who are trying to do things the right way, following the rules to appear before a judge, because they have faith in our justice system. But that faith has been betrayed.
The Sisters of Mercy of the Americas have long made immigrants a key focus of our work, one of our critical concerns, whether in California, where we have served for nearly 180 years, or Peru, Panama or Vermont. We take seriously the Gospel admonition to welcome the stranger.
Never have I seen such fear among my immigrant friends as I do now. People are being snatched off the streets by ICE, taken from schools or out of naturalization ceremonies, often deprived of their right to due process, and deported without any notice or hearing.
The cruel immigration policies of the Trump administration are about to get worse, if the tough talk by border czar Tom Homan and Customs and Border Protection Commissioner Rodney Scott on the San Diego border are any indication.
I urge San Diegans and all people of goodwill to stand up for our neighbors as we celebrate the holidays and after the observance of International Migrants Day this month. Being present to immigrants in their fear and need is a powerful way to be in solidarity with them.
I am one of about 300 volunteers who accompany people to immigration court through an ecumenical project called FAITH (Faithful Accompaniment in Trust and Hope), which is cosponsored by Our Lady of Guadalupe Catholic Church, the San Diego Catholic Diocese and San Diego Organizing Project. We can’t stop ICE from making arrests, but we can bear witness to this cruelty and offer comfort to family members and friends left behind. Our presence lets the U.S. government know that San Diegans care deeply about immigrants and their rights.
You can help in other ways too. Join a neighborhood volunteer patrol watching for ICE, deliver groceries to those afraid to leave their home or offer a warm greeting to a person without papers; you can make a difference.
One woman I accompany is the head of a large, mixed-status family from South America, who wants more than anything to abide by the law. But when I walk with her into court, the heavy presence of ICE fills her with fear. Her husband’s landscaping hours have been cut back, and she just wants to find a job so she can feed her family. But now she is afraid.
Another friend who was seeking legal status with the help of an immigration attorney has put that effort on hold because he fears being deported from the courtroom. It’s safer to stay in the shadows, he said.
As a native Californian, I am proud our state gives a mostly warm welcome to newcomers. California has vastly more immigrants — nearly 11 million — than any other state and these newcomers contribute in important ways to our state’s economic growth and innovation in areas ranging from high-tech to agriculture.
Political leaders regardless of party must come together to enact genuine immigration reform. But meanwhile, let’s be compassionate towards our migrant brothers and sisters during this time of Christmas posadas, in which the journey of Mary and Joseph seeking a safe place to give birth to Jesus is reenacted in our neighborhoods. Let’s remember that this couple were themselves desperate refugees and that one day their son would proclaim, “liberty to captives and good news to the poor.” (Luke 4:18-19)
Waskowiak is a member and former leader of the Sisters of Mercy of the Americas, the largest order of Catholic religious women in the United States. She lives in San Diego.