We Santa Cruz religious leaders cannot remain silent – we do not support Trump’s deportation plans
Migrants form a line to enter the U.S. and seek asylum through El Chaparral port of entry in San Diego at the Mexico border on Dec. 22, 2022. Credit: Carlos A. Moreno for CalMatters
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The incoming Trump administration has announced its intention to carry out mass deportations of undocumented immigrants. As religious leaders in Santa Cruz County from across the faith traditions, we cannot remain silent in the face of these policies that will cause untold damage to our community and our nation.
While we recognize the dysfunction of our current immigration system, mass deportations are surely the worst possible solution to this problem. And so we denounce the immorality of these troubling plans and their immense human, social and economic consequences.
We write with respect for the results of the election and for all of those who voted for President Donald Trump (including many in our own faith communities). At the same time, we cannot deny that our various faith traditions, though diverse, all affirm the dignity and worth of all persons and, in this case, especially of undocumented persons.
Key resources
Credit: Immigrant Legal Resource Center
- Know your rights, Spanish and English: https://susderechos.info
- Immigrant help: Community Action Board
- Support: Santa Cruz Welcoming Network
- Assistance: Your Allied Rapid Response
To say that each person has inalienable dignity means, among other things, that they have rights. Our Constitution protects the liberty of all residents by due process and equal protection under the law. This cannot happen if both citizens and noncitizens are rounded up and put into camps.
There are not enough immigration attorneys to safeguard these rights.
The age-old principle of the Golden Rule is also common to all our religious traditions: To treat others as you would have them treat you. We invite all in our community to reflect on this principle and the prospect of mass deportation.
For instance, how would you feel if you were separated from your children and sent over the border? Or how would you feel if you lived peacefully in our community for years, did essential work that no one else wanted to do, paid taxes and then were rounded up and sent to a detention camp?
Everyone will be affected by this threat to American citizenship. Trump said that he plans to deny passports to young and adult native-born citizens whose parents are undocumented or revoke their citizenship altogether. The proposed plan could strip naturalized citizens and their children of their citizenship.
If American citizenship can be removed from some, it can be removed from all.
Consider also the economic costs. Deportation threatens the viability of whole segments of the economy: agribusiness, hotels and restaurants, construction, housing and small business. Some estimate that the cost of deporting 1 million immigrants will be about $88 billion per year. The deportation of 1.2 million homeowners with mortgages would jeopardize the viability of lenders.
Nationally, 23% of construction workers are undocumented. There are 855,000 with college degrees in business, engineering, communications and social science. Three-quarters of a million immigrants are self-employed. Over one-half of undocumented residents – about 5 million – speak English well or speak only English.
Furthermore, as many people have the potential to be removed from our congregations and community, it undoubtedly means that many children may be left behind on their own or in the care of guardians. There are 3.3 million people nationally living in mixed-status households with documented and undocumented family members that could be torn apart. Separating families living in peace and contributing to our society is not a viable path forward.
We support the work of schools, local government and community organizers to protect this most vulnerable segment of our population. We also applaud the decision of the California government at all levels to refuse or limit cooperation with federal efforts to bring about mass deportations.
As faith leaders, we commit ourselves to educating those affected about their rights and to help them find ways to protect their families.
We call on our congregations and on all people of goodwill to speak up and act on behalf of all our friends, families and neighbors both undocumented and documented in this ominous moment in our country. For more information on how to take action, please visit our website at www.santacruzinterfaith.org.
Scott Newman is a pastor at Santa Cruz Bible Church and a participant in the Santa Cruz Interfaith Network. He wrote this piece on behalf of the network.
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