Home for the holidays
Imagine for a moment that it’s Christmas Eve or the first night of Hanukkah. Your family is gathered for an evening of celebration and prayer, but where there ought to be joy there’s profound sorrow because Mom isn’t there. She’s been deported, and an impenetrably byzantine system has barred her from returning, even if she is legally cleared to do so. Not such a happy holiday.
With such situations — along with the general injustice of our broken immigration system — in mind, faith groups across the country today launched “Home for the Holidays,” a major escalation of their effort to press Congress to pass reform that keeps families together.
The mobilization is innovative and widespread. Tens of thousands of people of faith across the country will send holiday postcards to Congress urging passage of immigration reform that unites families rather than keeping them separated, and faith-based networks are mounting statewide call-in days to Congress in seven states (OH, PA, MN, AR, MO, SC and NC), and large scale events such as prayer services and town halls in AR, IA, OH, and TX.
The campaign is especially timely not only because of the holiday season’s poignant reminder of the importance of family togetherness, but also because the White House announced on Friday that it intends to push for comprehensive immigration reform legislation early next year. Here’s hoping Congress takes that cue, and that it hears the faith community’s message loud and clear.