Martin Sheen hoists the Peace Candle

Martin Sheen hoists the Peace Candle, originally uploaded by freeloosedirt.

UCC Simi Valley, where I am a member, has offered sanctuary to a woman facing deportation to Mexico, but whose husband and children are American Citizens. Prior to coming to UCC Simi, she entered sanctuary in Long Beach. This was one year ago, and the organizations that have been protesting in front of our Church and the Church in Long Beach called for a "rally" today during our service. Martin Sheen, Delores Huerta (cofounder of United Farmworkers with Cesar Chavez), Arturo Rodriquez (Current President of The United Farmworkers) and Aztec dancers joined us inside for our service

Something Heidi wrote for VC Clue's May Newsletter

I think I speak for a lot of us when I say that life feels incredibly crowded right now. I am almost never sure that what I am doing at any given moment is what I should be doing and I always wonder if I should be focused on one of the seemingly million other things calling for attention. For four hours a week I don’t wonder. From 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. on Mondays I am absolutely certain that I am doing the right thing.
What is keeping me sane and focused is the island of calm and peace that I have found in the house behind the church. There is a devoted mother caring for her children. There is a baby receiving love from his mother and from the array of people who come to visit. This lovely family is doing what we are all attempting to do, which is to do the right thing for our families. The bravery and the faith that Liliana and her family show give me something to aim for.
I feel so honored to be part of the community of this church and the other communities of faith who are working to help Liliana. I have met people who dazzle me with their compassion, their love and their fortitude, who put aside their own comfort and concerns to do what is right. When I first began to hear the protestors outside on Sunday morning I found it jarring and frightening. As time has gone on when I hear them yelling into their bullhorns I sincerely wish that they could experience the joy and peace that I feel and that I think we all feel inside the building, giving and receiving the love, tenderness and care that sustain us all. We have become a true circle of compassion, giving when needed and receiving always. Liliana is at the center of our circle and she gives infinitely more than she receives.

In an odd twist, I come to the defense of W

Let me lead off by saying that I didn't watch Bush's seventh and final State of the Union address last night. I haven't been able to stomach watching him speak from early on in his first term. His vacant beady eyes typically reveal that he does not seem to understand the meaning of the words that he's reading from the teleprompter, and his habit of smirking and bobbing his head as if to say, "nailed it!" when he completes a sentence or word pronunciation that he probably mangled in rehearsals propels me to want to chuck something at the TV.

I have read more than a few articles from those who did watch it. I've noticed that Bush is catching some heat for his comment during the address, "Illegal immigration is complicated.." as if this were the newest Bushism. I've noticed that some people have adopted it as the signature of their email account like it's the, "Put food on your family" of 2008.

But the thing is, he's right. Illegal immigration is a very complicated issue.

The myth of illegal immigration is that these men and women are coming to the US to suck off the welfare tit. Every week people come to my church, UCC of Simi Valley, to protest because they don't agree with our decision to offer Sanctuary to Liliana, a woman who is at risk of being separated from her husband and three children, American Citizens all, because of a deportation order. The protesters stand at the curb and hold placards with simple slogans and repeat these through their megaphones. They hold the view that the issue and solution to illegal immigration is simple: build a wall, and then arrest and deport anyone who did not come to the US through legal means.

They're wrong.

People come to the US to work. They do that in a way that honors the Puritan work ethic that our country holds dear.

Employers benefit and encourage this cheap source of labor, one where overtime laws don't apply, workers compensation claims aren't made, and at times the employers take advantage of the workers. I'll never forget a story that a coworker told me; she said that the men that her contractor used to complete the remodel on her home came to her door and told her that the contractor had not paid them. He had taken the money from my coworker, but not honored his agreement with the guys that earned him that money. We carry this myth that illegal immigrants come to take advantage of us, but the truth is probably quite the opposite. We even go as far as defining them by changing an adjective to a noun and calling these men and women, "illegals"

What President Bush said is, "Illegal immigration is complicated, but it can be resolved, and it must be resolved in a way that upholds both our laws and our highest ideals."

"We also need to acknowledge that we will never fully secure our border until we create a lawful way for foreign workers to come here and support our economy."

"We must also find a sensible and humane way to deal with people here illegally."

I'm hopeful that we can find a way to work together and see the complicated issue resolved. That'd be a heckava job.

Pablito

Pablito is staying in the Parsonage of our church, UCC Simi Valley, with his mother, Liliana. Pablito, his two siblings and father are American Citizens, but Liliana is not. Her family legally immigrated to the US when Liliana was still in high school. She stayed in Mexico to finish her education with her friends, and when she tried to immigrate to the US to be with her family, she found, because she was now an adult, that she could not do so legally without a US employment sponsor. Her family arranged for her to be smuggled across the border to be reunited with them, but she was caught with a falsified birth certificate. She was able to cross undetected at a later date. After settling here in Ventura County, she met the man, Gerardo, she later married and started a family with. Gerardo works two jobs and this family was able to purchase a house in Oxnard. Over the years she has repeatedly tried to gain legal status, but because of that mistake that she made when she was 18, she is "permanently barred" from gaining legal status.

Not long after Liliana gave birth to Pablito, ICE came to her door one morning to detain and arrest her. When they realized that she had an infant, they gave her five days to arrange for his care and report to be deported. This episode was the latest in a series of instances where the person who is charged with enforcing US Immigration Law became familiar with what they were doing and used what ever discretion they had and backed down. Instead reporting for deportation, she entered into "sanctuary" in a Long Beach church where she stayed for two months before moving to UCC Simi Valley where she will remain until a final disposition of her case is made.

I've become committed to engaging in quiet witness and civil disobedience in being part of this "New Sanctuary Movement" We need sane, fair and moral reform to our immigration laws. America is stronger if this child, and his brother and sister, grow up with their mother and father.

Please join me.

www.newsanctuarymovement.org/