Heal Their Lands
Can you imagine how hard it must be to leave your family, your friends, your culture, your language, your belongings, and the only place you have ever known? I'm not talking about just going on a vacation, a study abroad trip, a missions trip, or moving to follow a calling. I'm talking about leaving everything behind because you do not feel as though it is feasible or sustainable for your life to stay where you are, and you are afraid for your life and future. This usually means relocating with next to nothing and starting completely over.
Maybe you do know what that is like. But I pray that you don't, because I can only imagine how difficult and painful it would be to make those sacrifices.
Before any assumptions are made I am not trying to take a political stance on this. In fact, I don't know that my comments on this fit a popular political opinion. No politician in particular has influenced my comments but current politics have influenced my decision to write about this.
As many of you know, I have been involved in humanitarian missions work in Central and South America for almost 8 years now. When I was 16 years old I set foot in a Colombian slum for the first time, saw the circumstances in which thousands live in (just in that one country), and heard stories of the things they have survived and live through currently. Civil war, drug violence, human trafficking, gang violence, extreme poverty, physical abuse, mental and emotional abuse, addiction, disease, murdered loved ones, even internal racism and discrimination.... I've since been traveling to Guatemala but see the same issues in different contexts.
When we talk about illegal, Latino immigrants in the United States, it is often associated with lack of opportunity in their own countries. While that is a major motivation for many immigrating to the US, it is some of those other issues previously listed that drive it all - they all feed into why there is a lack of opportunity for work, for safety, for hope of a better future. It's a much more complex issue than most make it out to be. Illegal immigration is a much bigger job to tackle than simply creating policy from the US end. It's viewed as if it is normal for people to leave their lives behind in their country of origin - as if it's what they have been preparing for all their lives - because we think the US is where everyone wants to be. This perspective is wildly naive and keeps us from seeing what the real issues are.
Before going to Guatemala I watched the documentary, Reparando, which provides history on what lead to the formation of slums in the Guatemala City dump and the Guatemala City slum called La Limonada. If I hadn't watched this documentary it would have lead me to make assumptions for why these communities existed, which would have been far off from the reality of how they came about. I've written about this previously, and below is an exert from a post I wrote a few years ago highlighting the historical details from Reparando.
The United States owned United Fruit Company was the largest land owner in Guatemala at the beginning of the twentieth century, as well as the largest employer. They provided crops for many countries and relied on unskilled, underpaid Guatemalans. During the United States' fight to prevent the spread of communism Guatemala was under the US's watchful eye as well. The Guatemalan president promoted an agrarian reform law which redistributed unused land from the United Fruit Company to landless Guatemalans. The US saw this as an act of communism, and on June 18, 1954 the CIA dropped leaflets in Guatemala City demanding for the president to step down. Confusion and a scramble for power brought a new president, who immediately reversed the land reforms and forced many Guatemalan peasants from their land. The government militarized, leading the citizens to form their own resistance in demand of democracy. A civil war emerged and led to widespread massacres. Over the 36 year conflict thousands of people were brutally murdered and over a million others were displaced. Over 450 Mayan villages were destroyed and the people lost their homes and farms. Many of these displaced people moved into the cities in search of a better opportunity, but a lack of jobs and resources dashed their hopes. Squatter communities formed slums filled with desperate people, one of the largest squatter settlements (in all of Central America) being the Guatemala City dump.
There are many Guatemalans that still hate the US and blame our country for the suffering that exists in their country - which I can't say I blame them for. ("F*** USA" is something I've seen graffitied on walls.) A more subtle element of the time we spend in Guatemala is repairing some of perceptions of the US and Americans. Still, Guatemala is one of the top countries that Latino immigrants to the US come from. You have to wonder what leads someone to immigrate, sometimes risking their lives to do so, to a country they hate, to escape the suffering they attribute to the country they are heading to. It's the violence, the gangs, the discrimination, and the other problems I previously mentioned that drive them to make desperate decisions.
We go to these countries to encourage those who are serving every day of the year and are fighting the brokenness and injustices that exist, coming alongside them during our stay. It's those who are in the community every day that are making a difference and we want to join them in ways that are useful. Because the answer to solving the immigration issues in the US is to see that healing comes to the homes of those coming. Eradicating the injustices that are driving people to the point of leaving their loved ones and the only place they've ever known, so they do not have to make the difficult decision to risk everything to come here, is what I believe is going to have the greatest impact on this illegal immigration issue. I want Latinos to thrive in their home countries so they do not have to struggle in an unfamiliar one. I want Latinos to feel hopeful and confident in their beautiful cultures so they do not feel as though they have to assimilate to a different one. Until people feel they can have a wonderful life available to them in their own country illegal immigration will always be a major political debate and conversation. Instead of looking at this problem from our government offices, we need to look at it from the streets and homes of the countries these immigrants are coming from - especially when the US had a hand in the suffering that exists.
The hard thing about this is that healing in these other countries is most likely not going to come from our government. As much as our government wants to argue they have the solution to illegal immigration, their policies are usually overlooking the true problems or ignoring them completely. There are also humanitarian crises all over the world, and it is not necessarily realistic to anticipate that our government will attend to all of them. It is really up to us, as human beings and/or Christ followers to care and take action. We need to go and see, sit in a rickety shack on landfill as a gang passes by, walk a narrow alley where someone was murdered, visit the dumps where thousands of people spend 12 hour days sifting through garbage for items to recycle and sell, and get to know the people that live in these places. Practically, contribute to an organization that is providing care, resources, and opportunities for them to learn skills and trades to better provide for themselves - through your time or own resources. But I truly believe that love is powerful, and loving these people where they are can have a ripple effect in their communities. When love rules, injustices will have no place in their streets. Personal investment in other people is something we can all do that is a powerful antidote to suffering.
So, without any political agenda, these are my thoughts on preventing illegal immigration. There's no quick or simple fix. In fact, it may even sound difficult. Love is messy and showing up requires sacrifice. But when you've seen what I've had the opportunity to see these last 8 years it is no longer an option to sit back and do nothing. Feel free to send me a message if you'd like more information on how you can get involved.
Maybe you do know what that is like. But I pray that you don't, because I can only imagine how difficult and painful it would be to make those sacrifices.
Before any assumptions are made I am not trying to take a political stance on this. In fact, I don't know that my comments on this fit a popular political opinion. No politician in particular has influenced my comments but current politics have influenced my decision to write about this.
As many of you know, I have been involved in humanitarian missions work in Central and South America for almost 8 years now. When I was 16 years old I set foot in a Colombian slum for the first time, saw the circumstances in which thousands live in (just in that one country), and heard stories of the things they have survived and live through currently. Civil war, drug violence, human trafficking, gang violence, extreme poverty, physical abuse, mental and emotional abuse, addiction, disease, murdered loved ones, even internal racism and discrimination.... I've since been traveling to Guatemala but see the same issues in different contexts.
When we talk about illegal, Latino immigrants in the United States, it is often associated with lack of opportunity in their own countries. While that is a major motivation for many immigrating to the US, it is some of those other issues previously listed that drive it all - they all feed into why there is a lack of opportunity for work, for safety, for hope of a better future. It's a much more complex issue than most make it out to be. Illegal immigration is a much bigger job to tackle than simply creating policy from the US end. It's viewed as if it is normal for people to leave their lives behind in their country of origin - as if it's what they have been preparing for all their lives - because we think the US is where everyone wants to be. This perspective is wildly naive and keeps us from seeing what the real issues are.
Before going to Guatemala I watched the documentary, Reparando, which provides history on what lead to the formation of slums in the Guatemala City dump and the Guatemala City slum called La Limonada. If I hadn't watched this documentary it would have lead me to make assumptions for why these communities existed, which would have been far off from the reality of how they came about. I've written about this previously, and below is an exert from a post I wrote a few years ago highlighting the historical details from Reparando.
The United States owned United Fruit Company was the largest land owner in Guatemala at the beginning of the twentieth century, as well as the largest employer. They provided crops for many countries and relied on unskilled, underpaid Guatemalans. During the United States' fight to prevent the spread of communism Guatemala was under the US's watchful eye as well. The Guatemalan president promoted an agrarian reform law which redistributed unused land from the United Fruit Company to landless Guatemalans. The US saw this as an act of communism, and on June 18, 1954 the CIA dropped leaflets in Guatemala City demanding for the president to step down. Confusion and a scramble for power brought a new president, who immediately reversed the land reforms and forced many Guatemalan peasants from their land. The government militarized, leading the citizens to form their own resistance in demand of democracy. A civil war emerged and led to widespread massacres. Over the 36 year conflict thousands of people were brutally murdered and over a million others were displaced. Over 450 Mayan villages were destroyed and the people lost their homes and farms. Many of these displaced people moved into the cities in search of a better opportunity, but a lack of jobs and resources dashed their hopes. Squatter communities formed slums filled with desperate people, one of the largest squatter settlements (in all of Central America) being the Guatemala City dump.
There are many Guatemalans that still hate the US and blame our country for the suffering that exists in their country - which I can't say I blame them for. ("F*** USA" is something I've seen graffitied on walls.) A more subtle element of the time we spend in Guatemala is repairing some of perceptions of the US and Americans. Still, Guatemala is one of the top countries that Latino immigrants to the US come from. You have to wonder what leads someone to immigrate, sometimes risking their lives to do so, to a country they hate, to escape the suffering they attribute to the country they are heading to. It's the violence, the gangs, the discrimination, and the other problems I previously mentioned that drive them to make desperate decisions.
We go to these countries to encourage those who are serving every day of the year and are fighting the brokenness and injustices that exist, coming alongside them during our stay. It's those who are in the community every day that are making a difference and we want to join them in ways that are useful. Because the answer to solving the immigration issues in the US is to see that healing comes to the homes of those coming. Eradicating the injustices that are driving people to the point of leaving their loved ones and the only place they've ever known, so they do not have to make the difficult decision to risk everything to come here, is what I believe is going to have the greatest impact on this illegal immigration issue. I want Latinos to thrive in their home countries so they do not have to struggle in an unfamiliar one. I want Latinos to feel hopeful and confident in their beautiful cultures so they do not feel as though they have to assimilate to a different one. Until people feel they can have a wonderful life available to them in their own country illegal immigration will always be a major political debate and conversation. Instead of looking at this problem from our government offices, we need to look at it from the streets and homes of the countries these immigrants are coming from - especially when the US had a hand in the suffering that exists.
The hard thing about this is that healing in these other countries is most likely not going to come from our government. As much as our government wants to argue they have the solution to illegal immigration, their policies are usually overlooking the true problems or ignoring them completely. There are also humanitarian crises all over the world, and it is not necessarily realistic to anticipate that our government will attend to all of them. It is really up to us, as human beings and/or Christ followers to care and take action. We need to go and see, sit in a rickety shack on landfill as a gang passes by, walk a narrow alley where someone was murdered, visit the dumps where thousands of people spend 12 hour days sifting through garbage for items to recycle and sell, and get to know the people that live in these places. Practically, contribute to an organization that is providing care, resources, and opportunities for them to learn skills and trades to better provide for themselves - through your time or own resources. But I truly believe that love is powerful, and loving these people where they are can have a ripple effect in their communities. When love rules, injustices will have no place in their streets. Personal investment in other people is something we can all do that is a powerful antidote to suffering.
So, without any political agenda, these are my thoughts on preventing illegal immigration. There's no quick or simple fix. In fact, it may even sound difficult. Love is messy and showing up requires sacrifice. But when you've seen what I've had the opportunity to see these last 8 years it is no longer an option to sit back and do nothing. Feel free to send me a message if you'd like more information on how you can get involved.
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ReplyDelete👌👌great insights.
ReplyDeleteThank you for the challenge!
Work is where the need is(on the streets) not the office.
Good read.
👌👌great insights.
ReplyDeleteThank you for the challenge!
Work is where the need is(on the streets) not the office.
Good read.