“For here on either side of the wall
are God’s children, and
no man-made barrier
can obliterate that fact.”
– Martin Luther King, Jr.
© 2019 Christy K
Robinson
I live in the Phoenix-metro area, about 200 miles from a
Mexican port of entry. There are several churches in the Valley of the Sun that
accept busloads of Central American asylum seekers from Immigration and Customs
Enforcement (ICE). These are people who have traveled more than 2,000
miles from their crime-ridden countries, seeking political asylum according to
international and United States law. They must apply for asylum on US soil. After their surrender and arrest at the Mexican-American
border, they’re "processed" through ICE detention centers for about
three weeks' incarceration in tents, remodeled Walmart stores, and chain-link
fencing inside buildings.
Parents sleep on asphalt floors with their children on their legs to cushion the toddler from the cold, hard floor.
In case you didn’t know, your tax dollars, to the tune of
billions, are paying top prices to these
for-profit prisons. It’s an industry that benefits handsomely from having
donated to Donald Trump’s presidential campaign. A Department of Homeland Security memo, dated December 2017, "details deliberate plans to implement a
family separation policy as a deterrent to would-be asylum seekers and
lays out strategies to increase detention of migrant children,"
wrote US Senator Jeff Merkley following an NBC News report. When Americans expressed outrage that children were being kept in fences and cages in June 2018, DHS Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen lied about the policy repeatedly.
The adult inmates of these prison
camps have been served rotten food, and forced to work all night for a
“payment” in candy or chips when they're still hungry after a meal. Here in Arizona, children were sexually molested
by Southwest Key employees.
In many cases, parents have been separated from their
children and summarily deported, leaving their children behind in Homeland Security-contractor prison
camps. Lately, because of citizen outrage leading to federal court orders,
families have been kept together in detention camps for up to 20 days. The children for whom the Trump Administration cannot locate parents or relatives, and says it would
require too much effort to reunite the thousands of families it separated. The separations are ongoing.
After the three weeks of detention, the lucky ones who weren't (yet) deported are given ankle monitors and wristbands, legal
documents, and then bused to a vacant lot near a commercial bus station or they're bused to a host church and told
to appear for several court dates with their immigration attorney.
 |
Homeland Security bus with opaque windows. Volunteers wait to
greet refugee immigrants. |
When they arrive in clearly marked “Department of Homeland
Security” buses at the bus station, and sometimes at churches, they encounter vicious
shouts and menacing gestures from right-wing, racist vigilantes who call
themselves the
Patriot Movement. These are zealots who support people like
ex-Sheriff Joe Arpaio, and film themselves and their children stealing from a
mosque. They scream at Hispanic or Native American state legislators to "go home," and they advocate killing "illegals" and executing government members, according to the Southern Poverty Law Center.
The refugees who are lucky enough to come to a church are
welcomed by volunteers who form a human shield against the protesters. As they
step off the buses, they’re escorted through “Do Not Trespass” yellow tape, to
a line of volunteers who applaud, say “welcome” or “bienvenidos,” and shake
their hands or hug them. The surprise and joy on their faces at this treatment,
after so much rejection, hate, and fear, is very moving.
 |
Cubans fled their country in overcrowded,
rickety boats and rafts. |
One of the volunteers hopes that the children are too young to remember their harsh journey and treatment. But my friend Hilda, a Cuban refugee who has since been naturalized, says she remembers being rescued from the rickety boat exodus by a US Coast Guard ship.
“You give hope, a smile like the one I
got from the Coast Guard at sea. I didn’t understand a word he was saying but
he handed me an apple and his smile said it all. I knew I was going to be OK,”
said my friend. She remembers.
The refugees I’ve seen are in
their teens and 20s, mostly women with children who appear to be 6 months to young
teens. The few men with children appear to be in their 20s or early 30s. I haven’t seen any middle-aged or older people.
Once safely inside, they're welcomed by the "sanctuary
church" pastor and given an orientation and instructions by an ICE officer
in both English and Spanish. The ICE officer told the people that unlike in their home countries, they could
trust the police in America. The
police would protect them from abusers. The relief on these young parents'
faces was obvious – and heartbreaking. The ICE officer also instructed the
people to stay in contact with a church at all times, and that they shouldn't
take off their ankle monitors because those who might offer to do so could
abuse or enslave them.
Meanwhile, the interfaith volunteers (Protestant, Catholic, non-denominational,
Jewish, and perhaps nonreligious people) are in the church kitchen and dining
room setting tables, pouring coffee and lemonade, making fruit platters, setting
out plates of homemade cookies, and filling plates with cornbread and veggies,
and bowls of soup or chili. The plates are delivered to the long tables of
parents and children (I assume single parents). The refugees are grateful for
the loving service and the home-cooked food after their long journey, arrest
and detention, and the anxiety of not knowing if they'll be accepted or
deported when they come up for court dates. It’s good to see them come into the
church hall and relax their guard.
Most volunteers are adults, but some people brought their
junior-high-age children to help. I put them to work delivering cups of coffee
and powdered creamer and taught them to ask, “Leche por café’? Uno o dos?” Even
the smallest children wanted coffee, which doesn’t surprise me. These kids come from
coffee-producing countries. They were willing to drink the coffee black and
bitter before we offered sugar and creamer. That’s how much they needed a
taste of familiarity and comfort.
After supper, the refugees are given zipper bags to stock up
on treats and granola bars for the next leg of their journey, which might be by
air or bus, to their sponsor families or relatives in distant states. They also
are given backpacks or cloth bags and then go "shopping" for donated
clothing, underwear, shoes, and toys that are heaped in the church hall. There were
many packages of new underwear and socks, and countless bags of used-but-nice
outerwear that we volunteers had sorted by size. I helped cut the tags off a new pair of Mickey Mouse shoes for a little boy who was trying to chew them off. The new shoes were just his size, unlike the old ones that were an inch too long.
 |
| Making shoelaces from twine. |
Their shoelaces had been taken away at detention centers.
(Really, all that work to get to America, and then they'd commit suicide?! No,
some of us suspect it may be another way to break the spirit.) Adults and
children shuffle around in ill-fitting shoes because of the lack of laces. I checked
the dollar store for shoelaces, but they didn't have many, and I wasn't
impressed with the price. One volunteer brought a ball of black twine, cut it
to the same lengths as his own shoelaces, and melted the ends with a lighter.
The refugees can have showers at the church,
and bed down on floors or mattresses in sleeping rooms before their journeys
resume the next day.
 |
Screenshot from a video of volunteers
serving up dinner. |
The group I work with brings food for 100 people at least
once a week. None of us are wealthy. I'm single and self-employed as a piano
teacher, church musician, and book editor, which "gigs" combine to
make just enough income to survive month to month. But what I have is far more
than what these children of God have.
This week, I took roasted turkey breast from my freezer, diced a huge onion and
three large pasilla chilies from the dollar store, minced garlic, added peeled
and diced yellow squash, and diced some Anaheim chilies and bell peppers from
my own patio garden. For my recipe,
click HERE. The main seasoning is Penzey's Spices 4S smoky seasoned salt, and a
bit of Penzey's smoked Spanish paprika. The result was absolutely fabulous! There were six
large crock pots of chicken soup or stew at the event (different recipes and
tastes of the various cooks), plus another few crocks of beans and rice, so my
crock fed at least 15-20 people.
 |
Turkey and green chili stew, with my Penzey's Spices jars in the background.
I
mention Penzey’s because it’s a socially responsible
company
that I admire, and their spices, herbs, and blends are delicious and
fresh.
They have stores around the
United States, but also ship from their website. |
One of our volunteers made Rice Krispy Treats, and we put
them out on platters, but they were mostly untouched at the end of supper.
These poor people from Central America had never seen or tasted the American
treat. I took the plates around the room and urged them in my poor Spanish to
accept the "dulces con arroz y marshmallow." Google Translate advises that I should have said "dulces
crujientes de arroz y marvavisco." I'll never remember that phrase! The brave ones who took
a square liked them. Maybe in 40 years, a naturalized American will remember
when an American lady offered them their first Rice Krispy square with poor
Spanish and a smile.
 |
I've blurred the faces of this mother and child
for security's sake. |
In my photos, I intentionally blurred the faces of a mother
and child to protect them from persecution. But it's plain to see that these
people are no threat to Americans. They're being fed and housed by volunteers, not your tax money. They have nothing
but the clothes on their backs, and they're not carrying drugs, or shooting
their way through the international boundaries, or in any way endangering
Americans or using government resources. In fact, they say they’re eager to
serve this country, not to cause trouble or make demands. Having been processed
at a port of entry, they are not "illegal" aliens, they are asylum
seekers who have a right under international and US laws to apply for
residence. Some of our church volunteers (of several faiths) have donated money
to buy transportation to Houston or other cities where the sponsors or
relatives are waiting.
Phoenix-metro sanctuary churches receive about 700 refugees
per week. I don’t know how many people are bused to churches or bus stations
around our country. We volunteers and more importantly, the refugees, could be
persecuted for doing what we believe is right. What our group is doing is legal, and we're actually working with ICE. But while soliciting clothing and bedding donations from a Christian group, I got some frowns from people who I believe are "build-the-wall" advocates. (Several volunteers with a
rescue group near the Arizona border were convicted of crimes for leaving
gallon jugs of water on migrant trails through a desert wildlife refuge.
https://abcnews.go.com/beta-story-container/US/humanitarian-volunteers-convicted-charges-related-leaving-food-water/story?id=60520579
)
 |
A tea towel from Penzey’s Spices that says,
"Heal the world. Cook dinner tonight."
We didn't heal the whole world, but we provided comfort to the hungry and hurting.
It's a good start. |
I wonder
what it feels like to be a refugee
I can only faintly imagine. First, to be forced to leave the
country of countless generations of your ancestors because drug cartels and
corrupt political leaders make it a death trap; second, to make the perilous
journey through other countries, through physical barriers of rivers and
mountains, with your children; third, to travel 2,000 miles by walking or buying transport from
legitimate means or dangerous coyotes; fourth, to reach the US border with thousands of
others, and be turned away by policies that are in violation of international
laws of asylum; fifth, to make it into an official port of entry and be
arrested and incarcerated for weeks; sixth, to be released with no money, no
English, no shoelaces, no food, no bus ticket for yourself and your child or
children, no immigration attorney, no idea of how to get to immigration court
in a distant state; and seventh – the US government is shut down and federal
courts are out of money, so court dates shown on their ICE documents may not be
valid.
I do know
two things
1. This is where
Jesus can be found. This is what he does, and calls us to do in his name.
Though I’m a Christian, I also recognize that people of other religions or no
religion have a Light in them, or a conscience, that informs their kindness,
mercy, and compassion. They donate clothing, bedding, money, food, and time to help people they've never seen before, and will never see again, because they believe in something greater than their own needs or desires.
2. The people I
served and will serve again are
Jesus. When did we see Jesus
hungry, thirsty, incarcerated, sick, without clothes, or with no place to live
safely? We see him in “the least of these his brethren.”
31 “When the
Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on
his glorious throne. 32 Before him will be gathered all the nations, and he will separate
people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats.
33 And he will place the sheep on his right,
but the goats on the left. 34 Then the
King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father,
inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. 35 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, 36 I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you
visited me, I was in prison and you came to me.’ 37 Then the righteous will answer him, saying,
‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink? 38 And
when did we see you a stranger and welcome you, or naked and clothe you?
39 And when did we see you sick or in prison
and visit you?’ 40 And the King will
answer them, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these
my brothers, you did it to me.’
41 “Then he
will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal
fire prepared for the devil and his angels. 42 For
I was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty and you gave me no drink,
43 I was a stranger and you did not welcome me,
naked and you did not clothe me, sick and in prison and you did not visit me.’
44 Then they also will answer, saying, ‘Lord,
when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in
prison, and did not minister to you?’ 45 Then
he will answer them, saying, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did not do it to one
of the least of these, you did not do it to me.’ 46 And
these will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal
life.” Matthew
25:31-46.
I choose life. I choose love.
*****
Christy K Robinson is author of
these books:
And of these sites:
Discovering
Love (inspiration and service)
Rooting
for Ancestors (history and genealogy)
William and Mary Barrett Dyer
(17th century culture and history of England and New England)
