Practical Applications for Christians Thinking about Immigration (Part 4)
As a missionary, I’ve been an immigrant/migrant/stranger for many years (More about that here). I didn’t feel like a legal or illegal stranger, I just felt like a stranger. I made choices, every day, to fix in or not fit in, and I knew I would never NOT be a stranger, even if I spent the rest of my life there. That was kind of depressing for me. I’ve worked hard to be a “legal stranger” everywhere I’ve been, and I’ve seen how THIN that line is. I’ve seen how many questions there are, and questionable areas there are. The laws change. The laws are different in different places. How the laws are interpreted are different. A single person can have a bad day and suddenly you are “Illegal” through NO ACTION of your own. My sister, who came to visit me in Brazil, had a 90-day visa. A random customs guy, at 3am, wrote “30 days” on her visa when she entered. She didn’t see him do it, she was just trying to stay awake. When she went to leave the country 60 days later, she was told she was “Illegal.” It can be as simple as that. That is one story. There are as many stories as there are immigrants.
Here are some things I think are important to understand:
1. I believe we need many more LEGAL, efficient, and safe ways for immigrants to enter the country. This is the best way to deter illegal immigration.
2. I believe Immigration is beneficial to the economy (“Immigrant workers help grow the U.S. economy” epi.org and here), and should be generally seen as beneficial, not evil.
3. I believe we have a duty to those inside our country to protect them from dangerous criminals, and I think that most people agree with me. NOTE: over 80% of drugs enter our boarders through citizens of our country (kbps.org “American citizens smuggle more fentanyl into the US than migrants, data show”) Citizens are twice as likely to be dangerous criminals over immigrants (“Undocumented Immigrant Offending Rate Lower Than U.S.-Born Citizen Rate” nij.ojp.gov and here.)
4. I believe we need to clear up many misconceptions about immigrants:
a. The government isn’t giving them a bunch of handouts.
b. “Refugee” is a specific, hard, long, and secure process and status. We still need to work on understanding our terms.
c. Immigrants aren’t taking our jobs and money.
5. I believe that Zero sum thinking isn’t healthy. Don’t play the game that we can only help out one “type” of people, or that if one person gets a piece of pie-it is taking that piece away from someone else. That is an awfully small and fearful way of living. (Here is one place to start)
6. I believe there is a long tradition of racism connected to the mistreatment (and how we speak about) immigrants. I am not saying that being against immigration is being racist, but there is a strong connection/correlation between them, so it is important to understand and be aware of why people might connect the two. A lot of it boils down to control, who thinks they have it, and who is afraid of losing it. This is not a pretty past, and does play into the present. This does not mean that bad behavior gets a free pass if done by someone who’s been targeted in the past, but it does require a hard look. Often, I think of it as, “Would this be how I talk/treat someone who is family?” If not, if I am “othering” someone, then I need to figure out why, and change.
7. Certain topics are chosen and used as political tools. Immigration is one of these. And when used for a personal agenda in politics, it is twisted and manipulated to work for a certain side, and to tell a certain story: not actually be “solved” or help the people who are struggling and need help. This is extra dangerous when aimed at people instead of a system. When politicians talk about the economy, they don’t call the people involved in finance “Rapists and bad blood,” They (mostly) talk about changing the system. Beware a political agenda that tells you how to solve immigration issues that (coincidentally) assists and benefits one specific political party, and promotes their mindset against another political party. Immigration directly affects people, and people do not fit inside one political agenda.
Some tools I found helpful:
1. All of the links I included in this study.
2. The Holy Post. I really enjoy their podcast, and they’ve visited the boarder and put together some good videos, podcasts, and articles about immigration.
3. Evangelical Immigration Table has some really great resources to download for free
4. We Choose Welcome. Hands down, the best Instagram posts I’ve found come from them. They also have put together some great free downloads.
5. I have not read any of these yet, but will start working on them. Here is a list of some books to check out.