Published on Portside (https://portside.org)
Sanctuary
Cities: Thinking for Ourselves
September 7, 2016
Shea Howell
Tuesday, September 6, 2016
People's Water Board
Donald
Trump came to Detroit over Labor Day weekend in a laughable, highly scripted
bid to prove he is not racist. Protesters greeted him. Detroit is the largest
African American city in the country, with a history of sophisticated political
organizing that counters such lame gestures quickly and clearly.
It is also
a Sanctuary City. Just days before coming to Detroit, Trump denounced Sanctuary
Cities, saying that if elected he would cut off federal funding until they renounced
these policies. “Cities that refuse to cooperate with federal authorities will
not receive taxpayer dollars,” Trump said.
Trump’s
statement provoked protests as well. Over 500 cities have some sort of
sanctuary policy, refusing to cooperate with immigration officials. Most of
these policies have come about in the last decade in response to the inhuman
deportation practices of the federal government that rip families apart, send
children alone to countries where they are strangers, and creates a culture
where people fear to report the most brutal of crimes.
But
Detroit, along with about 200 other communities, has a deeper history of
Sanctuary, beginning with sanctuary from slavery. We are the only city with a
statue honoring the Underground Railroad.
Our current
Sanctuary status grew out of bold civil disobedience to the US military in
Central America. In the early 1980s, in response to the thousands of immigrants
fleeing the torture and death squads of El Salvador and Guatemala, people of
faith and community activists joined together to challenge US policies by
providing Sanctuary to refugees. They publicly defied the US government and
welcomed families into church communities. In December of 1983 the Parish
Council of St. Rita Catholic Church resolved that their church would be “a
sanctuary for refugees from El Salvador and Guatemala, as a demonstration of
our commitment to people fleeing for their lives, and as a public witness to
our government to cease arming nations and urge negotiations to settle the
long-standing problems plaguing the people of Central America.”
In July of
1984 St. Rita’s became the first church in Michigan to welcome a family. Soon
churches in Ann Arbor, Grand Rapids, and Lansing followed. The Gonzalez family
arrived on a defiant Freedom Train. For the rest of that decade, Raul, Valeria
and their children challenged the US government as they lived and organized
against US military policies. Supported by activists and people of faith, they
were protected in sanctuary, speaking in churches, community centers, and
living rooms, describing their lives in El Salvador and the role the US
government played in supporting torture and death.
In the
spring of 1987 the Sanctuary Coalition organized Sanctuary Sabbath Sunday. On
the same weekend, hundreds of congregations participated in a
sermon/conversation about US involvement in Central America. Shortly after, the
Detroit City Council declared the city a Sanctuary.
The
materials prepared by the Coalition to guide the discussions emphasized the
long history of Detroit as a city of sanctuary. They consciously drew on the
legacy of the Underground Railroad. They also emphasized that suffering of the
people of El Salvador was directly connected to the suffering of those in
Detroit. All of the meetings closed with participants reciting a pledge:
“I pledge
to open my eyes and my heart through reflection, reading, and responding to the
needs of Salvadoran and Guatemalan people. I acknowledge the connection I have
with these people as members of the human family and pledge to discover how
U.S. foreign policy is affecting their lives. I cannot do everything, but I
pledge to do something today to make life better in my city and my world.
Working together makes change possible.”
To open our
eyes and hearts, to learn, to make connections, and to act with boldness are as
essential now as at any time in our history.
Donations can be sent
to the Baltimore Nonviolence Center, 325 E. 25th St., Baltimore, MD
21218. Ph: 410-323-1607; Email: mobuszewski [at] verizon.net. Go to http://baltimorenonviolencecenter.blogspot.com/
"The master class
has always declared the wars; the subject class has always fought the battles.
The master class has had all to gain and nothing to lose, while the subject
class has had nothing to gain and everything to lose--especially their
lives." Eugene Victor Debs
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