No More Strangers

The way immigrants are treated says much about the moral and spiritual fiber of a nation.

The Bible offers a spiritual imperative to deal justly with immigrants, or strangers: “When a stranger resides with you in the land, you shall not wrong him or her. The stranger who resides with you shall be as one of your citizens; you shall love that person as you love yourself, for you were strangers in the land of Egypt. I am the Lord your God.” (Leviticus 19:33-34)

These biblical injunctions to treat strangers justly are especially relevant today as capital travels between borders much more easily than people. America’s history is filled with tales of how honest, hardworking immigrants found life, liberty and pursued happiness in a new nation. Often missed, however, are stories of the struggle past immigrants endured to gain acceptance and how that struggle continues for 8.5 million immigrants deprived of the right to apply for citizenship.

Often separated from their families and victimized by employers, who know the workers lack legal status, our newest class of immigrants is suffering. These workers are often exploited, with bosses threatening to call immigration officials if a word about unfair work conditions, interest in union membership, oppressive hours or insufficient pay is uttered. Immigrant workers employed full time are nearly twice as likely to make less than $20,000 a year, when compared to those born in the U.S.

These immigrants are not strangers: They work in poultry plants, tend our lawns, pick our produce and care for our children. They are already part of lives, but lack the recognition, respect and social status they deserve.

Immigrants give more to the U.S. economy and government services than they take or use, adding about $10 billion each year to the economy and paying at least $133 million in taxes. A population survey for 2002 found that nearly 12 percent of the U.S. population is foreign-born. These are not strangers, they are our neighbors, co-workers and friends.

They labor, pay taxes, and dream of acceptance in our society. They add to the richness of our culture, often doing jobs that are unwanted by others, and follow in the footsteps of those who came to these shores before them.

While we hope and pray for a change in the hearts of people to do justice, America’s conscience needs to be reawakened and outdated immigration laws need to be changed. A new movement focused on highlighting outdated federal immigration policy and bringing immigrants out of the shadows-the Immigrant Workers Freedom Ride-is emerging.

Taking a lesson from the civil rights movement of the 1960s, labor, immigrant groups and their allies will crisscross the country for the Immigrant Workers Freedom Ride in late September. They will journey to Washington, D.C, and lobby Congress before gathering for an Oct. 4 rally in New York. Buses will depart from Portland, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Las Vegas, Houston, Miami, Chicago, Seattle, Minneapolis and Boston. Along the way, people of faith will offer food, lodging, prayers, worship services, songs and warm welcomes to those who ride the buses. The buses will be filled with faith leaders, immigrants, activists and trade unionists. The buses will also be filled with the hope that we can live together as one community and as a nation that has no strangers.

(Kim Bobo is the executive director of the Chicago-based Interfaith Worker Justice. IWJ is a national co-sponsor of the Immigrant Workers Freedom Ride.)