As we celebrate this Christmas season, we do so in a deeply ironic and troubled time. We remember the birth of Jesus, who was born into danger in a violent empire. Shortly after his birth, his family had to flee as refugees from Israel to Egypt to escape a despot.
Yet, we celebrate this while too many are active and making the lives of current refugees and migrants among us extremely difficult.
As someone who works in immigration advocacy, I have seen this firsthand in the Charleston area, where detentions and deportations are increasing rapidly. There has been a threefold increase across the state.
Unlike what some may believe, it is not just violent criminals who are being deported. It is not even just those who are undocumented, though anyone in that position should be treated with dignity, respect, and due process. It is, unfortunately, increasingly those who have been here legally and are going through the asylum process, but are being picked up at their check-ins.
Just days before Christmas, I talked to a mother whose husband, the sole breadwinner in the family, was detained after he went to his check-in for asylum. While he is waiting this month in a detention center in Georgia, she is trying to pick up the pieces and find a way for her children to make ends meet. Her lease expires at the end of the year, and she currently has no place to go and no job to support her family.
I’ve also worked with a high school student whose father was deported to Brazil this past fall. Fortunately, she was able to be taken in by a friend at the church, but she is still struggling to get by without a parent in the country. She will have to spend this Christmas without her family.
In many ways, this season’s Christmas carols and celebrations feel a little hollow. It’s hard to hear people talk about the child who has no place to rest his head, peace on Earth and good news to all, while simultaneously supporting policies and leaders that are doing the exact opposite by persecuting the modern-day Marys, Josephs and Jesuses in our midst.
This is not just a matter of the Trump Administration and ICE, but also about our local officials and leaders who supported these actions and have implemented policies to make these types of family separations and deportations more likely.
This Christmas season, as we sing about the baby Jesus, let’s remember the holy families that are struggling and living in fear in a nation where the majority of the population claims to follow and worship a refugee.
Will McCorkle is a local college professor who is an immigration advocate.
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