At our best, we are a nation which welcomes immigrants. At our worst, we are xenophobic and exclusionary. The Bible says of the stranger, “You shall love him like yourself for you were strangers in the land of Egypt” (Leviticus 19:33-34). These words come to mind when I think of the of the anti-Muslim policies of our president.
I recently received an E-mail from U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden of Oregon. He described “the shameful treatment of children and families” at the southern border. He states how they are locked in cages and kept there indefinitely. He calls these inhumane practices “depraved” and “sickening.” The fact that Kirstjen Nielsen, head of Homeland Security, recently resigned does not auger well for a change in policy. The psychic damage which results from the forcible breaking up of families is well-documented.
I am reminded of the film “Sophie’s Choice” in which Sophie is sent to Auschwitz, and is ordered by a Nazi officer to part with one of her two children. She understands that the child she keeps will live while the other will be killed. This “choice” is one which no human should ever have to make. One is not shocked by the inhumanity perpetrated in Hitler’s Germany, but when the U.S. pursues comparable policies, it boggles the mind.
In a recent tweet, President Trump threatened to send those who seek asylum in the U.S. to sanctuary cities. This serves two purposes — it punishes those jurisdictions which support sanctuary policies while at the same time punishing Democrats who are exponents of the sanctuary movement.
Lest you think that “sanctuary” is a new idea, remember Quasimodo in Victor Hugo’s 1831 novel, “The Hunchback of Notre Dame,” yells “sanctuary” when trying to save Esmeralda.
Why would one want the sanctuary movement to succeed? There are a multiplicity of reasons. It encourages the undocumented to report crimes, use health facilities, and educate their children, and, of course, it reduces fear of deportation. It also means that we are not asking citizens to do the work for ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement) and other agencies charged with this responsibility. Not too many years ago, Los Angeles schoolteachers were asked to report undocumented children to the authorities.
Donald Trump loves to cite the 2015 killing of a woman, Kathryn Steinle, by an undocumented Mexican immigrant. He used her death as a rallying cry at the Republican National Convention saying, “My opponent wants sanctuary cities, but where was the sanctuary for Kate Steinle?”
Immediately after his election, Trump signed an executive order threatening to strip federal funding from sanctuary cities of which there were more than 400… in this category. One cannot but wonder if crime might decline if we had fewer undocumented persons living in the U.S. The Federation for Immigration Reform “estimated in 2018 more than 500 jurisdictions have lower crime rates and stronger economies than comparable non-sanctuary cities.”
Once again, America can be a beacon of hope and understanding. We can build bridges, not walls, but this is unlikely to occur as long as Trump is POTUS.
Dr. Hal Sobel
Great Neck
