Thread: Aid flowing to Postville from religious leaders

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Article published: May 17, 2008
Aid flowing to Postville from religious leaders

Religious leaders in and near Postville are dispatching relief to the area, saying it is needed in the midst of a "human cause disaster."

Relief workers are offering financial and other support. That includes food, clothing and tutorial services to those in sanctuary, as needed.

They are operating in a week in which some businesses closed, schools operated with a fraction of their student population and hundreds of immigrants either left or sought shelter after federal agents raided the Agriprocessors kosher meatpacking plant Monday and arrested 389 workers.

The raid weighed heavily for Bishop Steven Ullestad, of the Northeastern Iowa Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, not only on his synod and its members but on his own emotions. A 1971 Postville High School graduate, Ullestad said he understands the emotional and economic toll people in Postville are feeling.

Ullestad participated in a conference call Thursday with area Lutheran and Catholic church leaders and with representatives from the Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service and the Lutheran Disaster Response team. They were trying to determine what steps area church and community leaders should take to provide support to immigrant families and others affected by Monday's raid.

"One of my questions to our congressmen will be whether the impact of the trauma to the entire community was taken into consideration," Ullestad said. "If there was going to be an intervention, my hope would be that there would be a handful of people who would be taken rather than 390 people out of a town of 2,400."

Many families have received sanctuary all week in St. Bridget's Catholic Church in Postville.

Archbishop Jerome Hanus of the Archdiocese of Dubuque said Monday's raid highlighted "once again the need for comprehensive immigration reform" and called on government officials to more adequately address the demand for labor and the "inadequacies of our present immigration policies and practices."

"Some of the weakest members among us are bearing the brunt of the suffering, while legislators and other leaders, as well as many of us in the general public, have failed to give this issue the priority it deserves," Hanus said.

The raid will have long-lasting implications that reach beyond Postville, said Bishop Gregory Palmer of the Iowa Annual Conference of the United Methodist Church.

"We cannot allow the pattern of history to repeat itself where the newest migrants to our nation become criminalized and become the target of our animosity, fear, racism and anger," Palmer said.

Ullestad said some of those hardest hit by the raid were the children of arrested workers. "In several instances children went as long as 72 hours without seeing their mother or father, not knowing where they were," he said. "Families have been torn, some have been taken to Waterloo while the remaining spouse is left behind with an electronic monitoring device on their ankle."

Representatives from the Guatemalan Consulate are in the area addressing concerns about deportation and the needs of workers' children with U.S. citizenship, as well as worries that some countries won't allow re-entry.

Ullestad said religious leaders will work with Postville residents to help them recover spiritually from the raids' impact. "The recovery of an entire town being violated in this way will take years. Even if they find another 390 workers tomorrow, the town will be in a process of recovery not unlike post-traumatic stress syndrome."

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http://www.gazetteonline.com/apps/pbcs. ... /1006/news

"One of my questions to our congressmen will be whether the impact of the trauma to the entire community was taken into consideration," Ullestad said. "If there was going to be an intervention, my hope would be that there would be a handful of people who would be taken rather than 390 people out of a town of 2,400."





Ullestad, please....pull your head out of your chalice and stop living in some nirvanian fantasy land, mmkay?

Neither Congress, nor ICE, nor any any other branch of the federal government has to take into consideration anything but the enforcement of our laws.

The people arrested are criminals. Their illegal alien family members you are....unlawfully btw....aiding, abetting, and harboring, are criminals. We owe them nothing. We owe you nothing. Postville is not a terriftory of Mexico. You are not the President of Postville, your church is not Town Hall. The raid does not qualify as a "disaster".

God willing ICE sticks around contiuing to do it's job so effectively and your overall population will be reduced from the remaining 2,000 by at least half.

In the meantime, spare us all the dramatics

Jesus says "You have the right to Protect your Nation from all Enemy's ".
i don't know the passage . but i do know it's in the New Testament spoken by Jesus .

A couple of interesting comments left after the article.

Ullestad said some of those hardest hit by the raid were the children of arrested workers. "In several instances children went as long as 72 hours without seeing their mother or father, not knowing where they were," he said. "Families have been torn, some have been taken to Waterloo while the remaining spouse is left behind with an electronic monitoring device on their ankle."

The children knew where their parents were--arrested.

Believe 12 of the 'children'--as young as 13--were not at school but arrested in the raid while WORKING in the plant.

Ullestad's inaction before the raid and not addressing the violation of child labor, drug, and firearm laws after the raid.
Can one conclude he endorses child labor?
How about the meth lab in the plant?
Reports state guns were present at the plant.
Many workers used stolen identities.
Are these practices of 'family values'?

"Families have been torn, some have been taken to Waterloo while the remaining spouse is left behind with an electronic monitoring device on their ankle."
Parenthood does not absolve a person from criminal acts.
Setting a good example by obeying the law is parental duty.
Accepting responsibility and consequences for one's behavior--is that not a Christian value?
Many parents who are citizens are arrested, including those in households headed by a single parent. Where are the examples that parent was released with an electronic monitor?

As long as my taxpayer money doesn't fund them, I don't care ...

Good. As long it's not my dime that's being used!

WHERE IS LA RAZA IN ALL THIS?

Pulpit propoganda

ICE should come back in a month for a follow up raid to make sure they did not neglect anyone the first time around!

The churches will quickly run out of money helping all these illegal aliens that have been and will be caught. Let them run out, I stopped donting to my church because of this.

Many families have received sanctuary all week in St. Bridget's Catholic Church in Postville.

Every church who aids and abets should be prosecuted and their tax exempt status needs to be revoked!!!