In honor of World Day of Migrants and Refugees Sept. 28, three blogs this month will focus on immigration issues
People who feel overwhelmed by the cruelty and incompetence of the current administration may well wonder how to protest most effectively. Massive turn-outs like “No Kings Day” have shown the will of ordinary citizens to resist the take-over by a would-be dictator—who blatantly admits his domineering goal and is making rapid progress towards it. But time and resources are finite. How to best channel our energies?
I’m no expert on the civil rights movement, but have undying respect for its leaders, and the courage of its participants. Reading Joy Unspeakable by Dr. Barbara Holmes has shown how their wisdom might guide us now. It was, of course, a totally different era with different issues and perhaps a comparison is unfair. But we see again a similar venom directed at the vulnerable, and the contempt for brown skin that some government officials once had for black, leading them to deny basic human rights.
It would serve us well to remember Holmes’ key point about the civil rights marches: they were contemplative. Looking at photos of the marchers, we don’t often see faces twisted with legitimate rage. Instead those famous faces radiate strength, serenity, conviction. Clearly, they draw on an inner wellspring, a theology created for the movement by Howard Thurman. “While weary feet traversed well-worn streets, hearts leaped into the lap of God…you cannot face German shepherds and fire hoses with your own resources; there must be God and stillness at the very center of your being.” (p.143) A certainty they were God’s beloved daughters and sons, deserving of dignified treatment they were not receiving inspired and invigorated.
The penalties for protesters now may not be as severe (yet), but the grounding must be the same, lest we descend into violence. For nonviolent protesters following Gandhi and King, “walking in community to challenge the forces of evil and death…the shrine was within.” (p. 144) Marches then and now don’t happen in officially sacred space. But they move forward in hope, “toward the fulfillment of God’s promises.” It is not God’s plan that any beloved children be treated as lesser, shunted into detention centers without due process. But the current administration boasts of the numbers they have already treated inhumanely, planning more prisons for more innocent victims. The human rights at stake now are similar to those that were then: standing up to corrupt leadership is as compelling. Then as now, dominant powers expertly hide the rot “so that those who act in opposition find themselves facing the illusion of an impenetrable behemoth.” (p. 146) As prayerful marching around Jericho brought the walls tumbling down, so we march too with high hopes it could happen again.
Kathy Coffey 