Immigration Rally Calls for Justice

July 30 , 2010 – Christian Reformed Church members joined other Protestants, Catholics, and representatives of the Jewish community to rally and pray for immigration reform on a sun-filled summer evening in Grand Rapids, Mich., this week.

Held on the occasion of the controversial immigration law in Arizona that was to go into effect Thursday, rally-goers were pleased by the news that a federal judge rendered a ruling only hours before that put a temporary stay on parts of the law, setting up a legal struggle that could end up in the U.S. Supreme Court.

Nonetheless, about 100 people gathered together in Ah-Nab-Awen Park on the banks of the Grand River in downtown Grand Rapids. They were there to talk, show support, and offer prayers for the undocumented immigrant community that, backers of the rally said, has no real political voice in political affairs related to them.

"The people most marginalized in our society really are undocumented workers," said Kate Kooyman, justice mobilizer for the CRC's Office of Social Justice and the Christian Reformed World Relief Committee.

As a Christian, says Kooyman, she sees the call for justice expressed throughout the Bible. "God is serious about human beings treating other human beings with respect and dignity," she said in an interview with a local Grand Rapids democracy advocacy group.

"The church is losing its voice if it is unwilling to talk about this issue," she said. "I hope an event like this speaks hope into the lives of people who are suffering because of unjust laws."

In an interview she gave to the Grand Rapids Press, she said, "The solution is comprehensive immigration reform, not laws enacted state by state."

In a prayer that he gave, Peter Vander Meulen, director of the OSJ, said that he hopes and prays that "our leaders would examine solutions to address the root causes of migration, such as vast economic disparities between rich and poor nations. We pray for economic justice throughout the world."

Vander Meulen also asked people not to be silent on this issue because it is so important: it involves a group of people who by necessity must remain silent and are especially vulnerable to actions taken by the government. Lawmakers on the state and federal levels need to know that people of faith are asking and praying for comprehensive reform.

The immigration issue, and how to address it, has divided some members of the CRC. Some strongly support the concerns of undocumented workers, while others are more in favor of restrictions being placed on undocumented workers.

At the same time, though, Synod 2010 declared that "all people are created in the image of God and are to be treated as such regardless of circumstances under which the church encounters individuals, or of a given person's race, background, or legal status."

For more information on the subject, visit CRC/ OSJ Justice Resources.

—Chris Meehan, CRC Communications

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