Dear friends,
Our hearts are with each of you and all of our Unitarian Universalist congregations and communities as you minister in this deeply upsetting and complex time. We seek to be a sanctuary, a safe harbor, in this turbulent time for all people under threat of oppressionâimmigrants, trans/nonbinary and intersex people, those needing reproductive care, those who are disabled, and many more. As events unfold that affect our exercise of these values, the UUA and our staff teams will be working to share more rapid response information and advisories, based on partners and experts we trust.
Advisory on Immigration Enforcement and Church Space
This weekâs announcement that the new Administration is ending the previous policy which prevented immigration enforcement actions in certain placesâincluding churches, schools, and hospitalsâis of special concern to us as religious leaders. It is part of a much larger push to dramatically escalate deportations and criminalize millions of migrants and members of our communities. We know this may directly affect many of you, your families and neighbors, and we are working to provide the support you will need to live out our faithâs call for us to be a people who offer sanctuary for the body, mind, heart and spirit.
While we will be sharing more soon, right now, we want to make you aware of the factsheet linked below from the National Immigration Law Center (NILC), which describes how we can continue to serve and support everyone in our communities, and especially the most vulnerable. It gives concrete actions to take to limit access to churches by immigration enforcement. |
The NILC states:
âThe rescission [of the Protected Areas Policies] is a fear tactic by the Trump administration to make immigrant communities feel less safe even in spaces that are at the heart of a civil society⊠All people in the United States have certain rights regardless of immigration status. However, now that the protected areas (aka âsensitive locationsâ) and courthouse memos have been rescinded, these areas no longer enjoy special protections from ICE enforcement. Instead, individuals will need to rely on basic constitutional protections in these spaces.â |