The Fine Art of Brotherly Love

Love thy... legal neighbor?


He pulled up on that worn, red bicycle - his prized and only means of transportation - next to the window of our comfortable, air-conditioned vehicle one summer morning. His name was Alejandro, a newcomer to Hispanic mission Pan de Vida, and he made his home amidst the Latino-dominated barrios of Chandler. Excitedly he told us of the new job he had found, mowing lawns and trimming trees as a day laborer. My mind wandered to the Latino laborers who came every Tuesday to our neighborhood, mowing our lawns and trimming our trees, working for incredibly low wages and long hours. The light in his eyes was bright, animated, although it dimmed slightly at the mention of the wife and baby he left three years ago. He told us of the equipment he meant to buy for a family bakery in southern Mexico, when he returned to home and family in two years or so more. 2 years, that's all. He rode away at last, after the proclamation of his hopeful scheme, his legal status doubtful, as every one of us in the van knew that there was no legal Visa even existent for his type of work.

I was torn.

This whole idea of immigration - particularly illegal immigration - has troubled, fascinated, and - more than anything - saddened me the longer I live here again in the States. I am puzzled at how intricate, how complex the issue has been made... when the solution, to me in theory, is so simple.
And yet, in our world today, I doubt that it really is.

If I take the issue as an 'idea' (which is all the normal American knows about it anyway) - I consider it all an outrage. I think I was born a conservative Republican - from the time I could talk, it seems, I have had a firm grasp on what I consider right and what I consider wrong.
And this whole idea of thousands invading our border, wilfully and illegally, is most definitely wrong. Four years ago, though, I got to see the other side - in both the physical and ideal sense of the word - and I think, now, I understand. That's why I jumped on the opportunity to thoroughly research the whole issue - inside and out - last semester in English 102 at Chandler-Gilbert.

Allow me, for a moment, to share a few facts, a few thoughts, and a parting idea with you.
For a moment - just one - try to forget prejudice, any deep-rooted preconceptions of the idea (for all your protests otherwise, I promise you have a few!) , and perhaps you'll see more clearly once I'm through. More than anything, I pray that you might remember, as a believer in the Lord Jesus Christ, the call that we have as Christians to love and serve all. This is not a suggestion, not a guideline... this is a command.

As early as the 1830's, the regulation of immigration went almost unchecked as thousands of immigrants barraged the eastern border for entrance to America (our ancestors, by the way!) The Irish, for example, came in hordes during the Great Potato Famine of the 1840's, eager for work, shelter, and most of all, food. During this time, the regulation of immigration was under the control of individual states, a situation that continued until 1875 when Congress ultimately took control. As the century progressed into the 1880's, racism took control of the influx of immigrants, and many Asians and Eastern Europeans were consequently barred from entry. However, the end of World War II opened the doors to immigration, and on into the 1990's record numbers of immigrants are documented, and the immigrant population of Hispanics from Mexico and South America began to grow by huge numbers. And it was then Congress began to take action, albeit cautiously. And in 1996, the unclear, long-ignored subject of immigration was finally raised, and the chronically gray area of immigration policy became more visibly defined with the passing of the Antiterrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act (AEDPA), and even more especially the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigration Responsibility ACt (IIRIRA). Unfortunately, these new policies only increased the complexities of this body of law when it came to their implementation.

And so we reach today, the millennium attained, the year 2006. Immigration numbers have never been greater - an estimated 1.1 million immigrants will enter the U.S. this year. According to a study conducted by the Pew Hispanic Center, our state of Arizona has a population of 500,000 undocumented immigrants. While I understand that the mass illegal immigration is wrong and should be abolished, may I suggest a second side to the issue. I believe that today's immigration system needs a complete reform - a system whereby workers here might obtain their legal work visa, and immigrants entering the country might do so legally.

For those who have read "There and Back Again", may I remind you of my Saturday mornings at the San Luis mission - an experience which has permanently changed my view and perspective on life as it should be. Squatters a few years hence had built shacks of aluminum and cardboard - other more permanent residences consisted of worn adobe and dirt floors. Here, in the dust and squalor, is where dreams of a new life start. Four hours from the border, a trek on foot would be nothing compared to the journeys some make to the United States. And this is why the majority of the 1.1 million influx of immigrants per annum come from Mexico and countries similar, making this pilgrimage every year. Dreaming of new lives and better conditions for their children, they will do whatever (and I really mean the word) to get across that border. (Sounds familiar... remember our ancestors - the ones we hail as heroes of freedom and democracy?) Their need is real, their plight genuine. And entirely overlooked. According to an interview I conducted with an expert on the subject, 'if the [immigrant] is trying to better his life through immigration and working in positions of manual labor and landscaping... there is no process wherein he can receive a valid Visa to remain here.'

Get that. So pretty much any Latino you see doing any kind of unskilled labor - construction, landscaping, lawn maintenance, etc. - is - without doubt - illegal. Imagine one day - one day - without them.

Oh yes, I know what you all are thinking. That's all well and good... but why does that mean we should accept them? Why do we have to carry their weight? After all, they are able to obtain free medical service in our own emergency rooms. Why should we have to support them?

Fact is - the true fact is - we don't.
We never have.

Men and women with Alejandro's purpose and determination, with their dreams and hopes, contribute hugely to the American economy. We don't support them... not really. Think of where they work. Think of what they do! East Valley Bible Church has a ministry to a small church in Queen Creek, feeding migrant workers who work literally day and night in the orchards of Queen Creek and Gilbert. Never have I seen men more physically tired - "time off" is an unknown term to them - their work ethic exceeds anything even I could imagine. Who else would do these menial, seemingly worthless jobs but for them? Few Americans would work for the insignificant income it affords those who do, and few of us (and I really mean few!) know how important they really are. They landscape and build in the spring and summer, harvest our orchards in the fall, work as day laborers in the winter. They are the backbone of our daily life - but do we even notice it? According to that aforementioned interview, they provide 'a tremendous amount of low income labor that helps to keep the price of produce and construction low. They do a tremendous amount of work with very little compensation.'

According to discussions I have conducted with Jose Manuel Hernandez, the pastor of Pan de Vida, and Mike Paasch, World Ministries pastor at East Valley, obtaining Visas for such unskilled labor is virtually impossible. The system is both impersonal and too personal, it disregards individual situations, and yet all power to bestow said Visa is in the hands of whoever happens to interview you. The records kept are not sufficient - this same Jose Manuel Hernandez recently struggled with an identity conflict keeping him in Mexico for nearly 5 weeks, for lack of proper information about him - he who had crossed the border completely legally since 1983 and kept completely above board with his Visa situation. His fingerprints - eventually proving his innocence - were lost twice in transit from Nogales, Sonora to Washington D.C. for analysis. Visitors visas can be nigh on impossible to obtain - let alone a worker Visa. Months, maybe years, and a minimum of 2000 dollars later, you can have a worker Visa, for a skilled labored position. Maybe. And yet the number of illegal immigrants into the States shocks and outrages us - we should rather ask ourselves what could possibly be more likely! But the media chooses to portray all immigrants as criminals, law-haters - we are told 'illegal aliens are not doing work Americans won't do' (direct quote!!) - but do we see any great number of Anglo Americans doing the base unskilled labor employing these aliens? The vast majority of America's aliens have come to work, and work hard.

Some would say that illegal aliens make very little difference in the American economy, or some would even imply that they take more than they supply. They are criminals, looking to ruin and tear down the American economy, robbing Americans of work, funds, and sheer space. I fully respect the opinions and fears of these people, who fear for the legal residents of this country. I can and do sympathize, for I was there, too. Give me leave, as well, to set these fears at rest - 'there is a tremendous pull to the United States', as companies and organizations solicit their help in agriculture, construction, and other jobs of this kind. The very difficulty and impersonality of the U.S. border system keeps them from the dignity of legal status. And as for their role in the American economy, it is unquestionable. 'There is a fairly large pool of unskilled labor soliciting their help'. The temptation to come illegally, since there is no process or program to provide them coverage, is therefore huge. And point blank, Americans, employed or otherwise, are not providing the labor necessary in these professions. So they come.

And so we are blessed - more than we can ever know, living in and protected by a government founded and built up in democratic freedom, both political and economic. We are blessed beyond measure, stomachs filled, closets brimmings, possessors of things unimaginable - here in this grand, beautiful, free country, the United States of America. Think about it - we spend every day, every night in America - free to speak what we think, to see and hear what we want, to do and worship as we please. Who wouldn't want this kind of freedom? Yet we here we are, building walls, building vigilante border patrol, building processes and border systems virtually impassible - keeping out those who want what we have, merely because we have given them no way to obtain the visas they need to enter legally. Has our maximum occupancy been attained?

Finally, friends, as believers, we have a much higher calling than we do as citizens of the United States of America. Even this wonderful country we call our home for a few passing years is not where we belong. We are citizens of the kingdom above - a reign that will never end. Why then, is these immigrants' illegality such an insuperable barrier? It is wrong - yes. And yet even those who speak out strongest against these people's sin toward the government break the same laws they supposedly support by speeding on their way home from work. Let us examine ourselves! Don't get me wrong - I want nothing more than the laws of the land and of God to be fully upheld. Let us, though, love our neighbor - yes, even the illegal neighbor. For neighbors they are.

'Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. 35For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, 36I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.' Matthew 25:34 - 36

I, as a firm Bible-believing Christian, however, thoroughly recognize that we are told (Romans 13:1-7) quite plainly to submit to the governing authorities. This is our duty. And this I believe. However, many Hispanics don't see the American government as their authority (wrong though it may be). It is the primary view of the Hispanic culture - and it is biblical as well - that each father has a duty to supply for their family's needs (1 Timothy 5:8) . A twelve-hour work day in Mexico, doing the exact same work they do here, brings in a total income of (maybe) 10 dollars a day. Nothing - nothing to support a family. And that's if they can find work! To add to their despair, grocery prices are shocking - I remember paying 4 dollars for a mere gallon of milk. They don't come for just any reason - they come because they have nowhere else to go.

So why, I ask myself, do we look down on them, frown on their sin and berate them to such an ungodly degree? Are we not also to blame? Do we not have a rather large plank in our own eyes as well? It is these few remaining days that we have here on earth that can make a difference in the kingdom of God. These immigrants are the hungry, the thirsty, the stranger, the unclothed, the sick, the imprisoned... and we, as believers in the Lord Jesus Christ, have a far greater calling to them than to citizenship in the United States of America. And think of this - we have an opportunity to reach out to peoples we would never encounter otherwise! Romans 17:26 says 'From one man he made every nation of men, that they should inhabit the whole earth; and he determined the times set for them and the exact places where they should live. God did this so that men would seek him and perhaps reach out for him and find him...' He - in his infinite sovereignty - has brought them to us! Let us hope, by their arrival, that they might come to know Him. Perhaps we are not lawmakers or legislators that can make a dramatic difference in this area of immigration reform. However, let us love, yes, both our legal and illegal neighbor, for this command, friends, is the second of the two greatest laws we have been given, and it is our duty to put these - and no others - first.

Let us love.


(I have not included a bibliography of my sources... I can do so if anyone should deem it necessary.)