They are all our children

This fortunate child, were it not for her clothing, would be visually and genetically indistinguishable from the 50,000 unaccompanied children arriving at the southern border of the USA this year, seeking safety. Those children, labeled “illegal aliens,” are being met by border patrol agents who arrest them and jail them in large holding cells with minimal food and shelter and no comfort. Sometimes the children have to be transported in buses to hastily-re-purposed buildings, and sometimes those buses are met by angry white Americans screaming, shouting obscenities, and waving signs that say, “Go Home” and “Not Our Children. Not Our Problem.” Often the children are deported, sometimes to their deaths.

Some Christians, Moslems, and Jewish people have declared this weekend the “Interfaith Weekend of Compassion and Prayer.”

There is a website that is collecting letters of welcome and letters of comfort for the children. We can write our own letters or sign on to a mass letter that says, “Dearest Child, We know the journey here must have been very difficult--you are so brave! When you are feeling afraid or alone, know that so many of us are thinking of you. We have such bright hopes for your future. You deserve a life of happiness, health, and safety. Most Sincerely, [your name].” One does not have to be a resident of the USA to write or sign the letter.

I do believe every one of these children is as much “my” child as this one. Any one of them may be what saves us from the violence and destruction of our greedy culture. I am hoping to find a more engaged way to stand in solidarity with the children than by signing petitions and writing letters. This is my heart-felt wish for the children: May they find safety. May they be held in compassion. May their suffering be relieved. May we hold them in our hearts as we hold our own children.

I am rushing off to photograph a social justice event in Portland and will not have time to respond to comments, but if there are any, I will read them later with thanks.