As leaders of faith traditions, we must express our deep concern for what is happening to immigrant families in our country. It is a cliché to say that the United States is a nation of immigrants, albeit some unwilling, only because it is so true. We recognize that unless we are among the First Peoples, all of us are descended from families that once migrated to these shores, though the enslaved did not do so by choice. The strength of the United States is rooted in our diversity. Our national pain is rooted in racism. We are shocked to see racial and ethnic fear mongering promoted, yet again. What is happening to the heart of America?
In a 1963 television interview, American writer James Baldwin stated, “I’m terrified at the moral apathy, the death of the heart, which is happening in my country.” Those words could have been spoken today, as immigrant hopefuls are turned away from our shores, thousands of children are torn from their parents’ arms by ICE, and thousands more DACA children are used as political pawns.
