People have been offering one another sanctuary in various forms across history and throughout nations. Within the U.S. context, the Sanctuary Movement of the 1980’s arose in response to the thousands of refugees fleeing military oppression and civil war in Central America. A resurgence of this kind of formal Sanctuary in faith-based congregations is again on the rise, joined by many other forms of accompaniment of migrants and resistance to laws that would criminalize them.
As the U.S. presidential campaign unfolded in 2016, immigration became a core issue, often framed in racialized ways. The call to “Build the Wall!” galvanized a core of supporters who ultimately helped assure Trump’s election. His success in generating and harnessing fear toward the “other” – especially migrants – has emboldened him toward restrictive migration policies throughout his Presidency. Though many of these initiatives have been eventually struck down by the courts as illegal, Trump continues to rally his base around hostility to immigration and to migrants.
Migrant caravans traveling through Mexico have become convenient targets for this hostility. These caravans have existed for years; they are formed when people fleeing violence and hardship in their home countries join together for a margin of safety along the perilous journey. In the spring of 2018, when one such caravan attracted relentless attention from Trump, many people felt called to counter the hostility with a different response. One such response emerged from a partnership between Pueblo Sin Fronteras – which coordinates volunteers to accompany refugees on their journey through Mexico – and Showing Up for Racial Justice (SURJ). To show that the President did not speak for us, to offer a counterpoint to the hatred we were seeing, and to make sure that those seeking refuge had the best chance for safety, these groups put out a national call for sponsorship with the message, “When Trump closes doors, we open them.”
Since then, formal and informal accompaniment networks have arisen in cities and towns around the country, including visits in detention centers, demonstrations at Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) offices, accompaniment to court hearings, and assistance in finding healthcare and shelter. Scores of volunteers have joined border organizations in both the U.S. and Mexico to assist with conveying legal information and to staff the short-term shelters that are often overwhelmed by the number of people in need. One of our contributions to this outpouring of solidarity has been to recruit, prepare, and support sponsors willing to shelter migrants who are in the process of seeking asylum.
As the U.S. presidential campaign unfolded in 2016, immigration became a core issue, often framed in racialized ways. The call to “Build the Wall!” galvanized a core of supporters who ultimately helped assure Trump’s election. His success in generating and harnessing fear toward the “other” – especially migrants – has emboldened him toward restrictive migration policies throughout his Presidency. Though many of these initiatives have been eventually struck down by the courts as illegal, Trump continues to rally his base around hostility to immigration and to migrants.
Migrant caravans traveling through Mexico have become convenient targets for this hostility. These caravans have existed for years; they are formed when people fleeing violence and hardship in their home countries join together for a margin of safety along the perilous journey. In the spring of 2018, when one such caravan attracted relentless attention from Trump, many people felt called to counter the hostility with a different response. One such response emerged from a partnership between Pueblo Sin Fronteras – which coordinates volunteers to accompany refugees on their journey through Mexico – and Showing Up for Racial Justice (SURJ). To show that the President did not speak for us, to offer a counterpoint to the hatred we were seeing, and to make sure that those seeking refuge had the best chance for safety, these groups put out a national call for sponsorship with the message, “When Trump closes doors, we open them.”
Since then, formal and informal accompaniment networks have arisen in cities and towns around the country, including visits in detention centers, demonstrations at Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) offices, accompaniment to court hearings, and assistance in finding healthcare and shelter. Scores of volunteers have joined border organizations in both the U.S. and Mexico to assist with conveying legal information and to staff the short-term shelters that are often overwhelmed by the number of people in need. One of our contributions to this outpouring of solidarity has been to recruit, prepare, and support sponsors willing to shelter migrants who are in the process of seeking asylum.
