ANOTHER COLD DAY AT THE MONTHLY VIGIL - DECEMBER 28, 2017

     What good are vigils when ICE just keeps on picking people up?  It is a good question to which I do not have an easy answer.   At the December vigil we were asked to share,  "Why am I here?"  I said that it is to keep my soul whole and my heart healthy.  I think of all ​the immigrants, mostly undocumented, that are in my heart and mind:  Andrea from Argentina;  Heidi from Nicaragua; Jessica from Guatemala, Gladys now in Guatemala with her family; Ada and William and the list goes on.  I am here because it is one way that I can witness to ICE my profound disagreement with their policy of detaining and deporting people and in the process dividing and destroying families.

      Are there other ways to protest?  Yes, IMIRJ, the Interfaith Movement for Immigrant Justice, provides accompaniment to ICE check-ins and court hearings; writes letters of support for immigrants seeking to stay in the United States; organizes faith communities to join the Sanctuary movement and stand with our immigrant neighbors and friends when they are "profiled" or discriminated against.

         I am reading an interesting book, This is an Uprising, by Mark and Paul Engler, Nation Books, New York, 2016.  The authors analyze social movements that "conduct carefully planned exercise in mass disruption."  How can I/we disrupt ICE operations?  Strategic non-violence means a variety of tactics:  sit-ins, boycotts, marches, mass arrests and legal action and yes, public vigils.  The purpose of these tactics is to educate the public about a problem and to encourage others to act.  

       In 2018 I think that we are called to DISRUPT the normal detention and deportation process.  I am not sure how but please send me your ideas and thoughts so that 2018 can be the year of civic resistance.  Future blogs will let you know what we decide to do. 

      Our vigil/rally closed with the statement:  
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​       Dear People of Oregon, ICE out of Oregon is what we ask for, We are here to stay, Because this is our only home.

NOTE:  There are monthly vigils at the Washington County courthouse and the last Thursday of each month outside the Portland ICE office from 10AM-11AM. For more information, check the website www.imirj.org

Vigil at Portland office of ICE, Immigration and Customs Enforcement