Arizona church's Day Labor Center intensifies immigration debate
Episcopal News Service. June 15, 2007 [061507-01]
Pat McCaughan, Senior associate for parish life at St. George's Episcopal Church in Laguna Hills, California and senior correspondent for the Episcopal News Service, Mary Frances Schjonberg
A day labor center at Good Shepherd of the Hills Episcopal Church in Cave Creek, Arizona, has become a flashpoint for the nation's heated immigration debate.
Good Shepherd began the day labor program seven years ago at the invitation of officials in Cave Creek, located about 35 miles north of Phoenix, said the Rev. Glenn Jenks, the church's rector. But on June 18 the day labor center is expected to be a hot agenda item at a 7 p.m. town council meeting.
"The town had become concerned because the presence of migrants was creating issues for some of the businesses," Jenks said. "There were traffic problems, there's one main drag through town, no sidewalk, no shoulder, and the workers would mosey up and down the road looking for someone to pick them up."
"The center was started as an effort to help the town deal with the presence of a number of migrants on the road who gathered in front of businesses, and to provide a single location where there would be organization and structure and help to get them work," she said.
On any given day, the center matches between 35 to 50 laborers with prospective employers. Nearly 120 laborers are registered with the center; about 80 of whom have been matched with permanent positions, said Dr. Dan Dooley, a retired orthodontist and parishioner who operates the center and who plans to speak on its behalf at the town hall meeting.
"We started it to try to help the city and for humanitarian reasons," Dooley said. Objections stem from an Arizona law prohibiting the hiring of illegal aliens, he said, adding: "But it's a law that's not enforceable. We've learned that these are decent people looking to feed and clothe their families back in Mexico."
But a "Take Back America" march scheduled for June 16 at the Arizona state capital and in several other states highlights growing antagonism over immigration.
"Arizona is the frontline in the illegal immigration debate," said Mae McLaren, an Arizona march organizer. "We probably feel the negative impact of this worse than a lot of states do. We're inundated with illegal immigrants here in Arizona."
Don Sorchych, publisher of the Sonoran News, a local newspaper, is a vocal opponent of the center, as is the American Freedom Riders (AFR), a group of motorcyclists who are helping to organize the march and who regularly picket Good Shepherd's center, Jenks said.
Neither Sorchych nor the AFR returned telephone calls, but the AFR website features a photograph of the church day labor center's sign and the following commentary: "The sign should read: Illegal Alien Day workers break the law here, have no fear."
"If these misguided church members are so concerned about the welfare of illegal aliens, it seems like they would take them home and provide them with adequate shelter instead of leaving them to live on the ground in the surrounding desert," according to the website.
But Dooley said most workers live in apartments within a ten-mile radius of the center. Workers earn between $8 and $10 per hour and pay one dollar a day to participate in the center's program. Four local churches provide support and volunteers. A food pantry, continental breakfast six days per week, mediation in the event of labor disputes and partially-subsidized medical and dental services are also available.
"It helps to keep the pressure off the local health care system," he explained. "We handle any simple dental or medical problems. They pay part of the costs and the church pays part of the cost so they don't go to the emergency room and put pressure on local facilities."
Usama Abujbarah, Cave Creek's town manager, praised the day labor center. "From our side as the town's administration, we think the Episcopal Church is one of the best assets in our community," Abujbarah said. "Helping the day laborers helps the community."
While the June 18 meeting will likely stir strong emotions on both sides of the issue, he emphasized that no decisions would be made. "The meeting is going to be for discussion only; an opportunity for the public to express their opinions and feelings."
Cave Creek's current turmoil is a microcosm of the nation's embattled immigration policies, Abujbarah added.
"Some individuals are trying to force that debate on our small community," he said. "As a town, we have no legal authority to deal with the immigration issue or the day laborers, if they are undocumented workers or illegal immigrants or not, we have no legal authority to interfere with them. We think the immigration issue is up to the Congress to resolve for the entire nation."
The latest attempt at immigration reform was sidetracked in Congress last week, but two U.S. Senators said June 14 they are negotiating to have the bill put to a vote before the July 4 recess.
Richard Parkins, Episcopal Migration Ministries director, recently said that the current bill's provisions do not constitute the comprehensive immigration reform for which the Episcopal Church and other faith groups have lobbied.
The 75th General Convention in June 2006 passed Resolution A017, which sets out the Church's stance on immigration reform. The elements include giving undocumented aliens a reasonable opportunity to pursue permanent residency, allowing legal workers to enter the U.S. "to respond to recognized labor force needs," allowing close family members to reunite without undue delay with individuals lawfully present in the U.S., granting legal due process rights to all persons, and having "proportional and humane" enforcement of national borders and immigration policies.
The resolution also called for members of the Episcopal Church to learn about the "plight of refugees, immigrants, and migrants [and] the root causes of migration," and to "commit to welcoming strangers as a matter of Christian responsibility, to advocate for their wellbeing and protection and to … resist legislation and actions which violate our fundamental beliefs as Christians, including the criminalization of persons providing humanitarian assistance to migrants." On June 14, the Church's Executive Council, its governing body between Conventions, passed Resolution NAC022, which reiterates those principles.
Legislative maneuvering in Congress last week came close to resulting in "the challenge of possibly supporting legislation that would offer legalization to the undocumented but undermining the family basis of U.S. immigration policy," Parkins said.
"We do know that a bill which does not honor family unity and offer protection to 12 million undocumented workers is not what we want, nor is it what we have been working so hard to achieve," he said. "The Church's policy is clear on this. It is hoped that this chance to bring some sanity and compassion to the U.S. immigration system will not be missed as efforts are made to resuscitate comprehensive immigration reform legislation."
Jenks said the Cave Creek center has become a signature ministry for Good Shepherd, letting day laborers "know they're cared for, loved, welcomed and safe. Just the fact that they are here on a daily basis reminds us always of why we're here," he said.
Dooley said the day labor center inspired him to join the 320-member Good Shepherd when he moved to Cave Creek from Memphis, Tennessee four years ago. "The outreach is so huge in this community for so many things, I wanted to be a part of that," he said. "It's rare that you find a church whose mission you can truly see as God's work. It's just the right thing to do."