Thread: illegal Immigrant Takes Refuge in Chicago Church

8/16/2006

By DON BABWIN
Associated Press Writer


CHICAGO



Immigration activists around the country are taking up the cause of a single mother who invoked the ancient principle of sanctuary and took refuge in a Chicago church rather than submit to deportation to Mexico.
Elvira Arellano, 31, was holed up for a second day Wednesday at Aldalberto United Methodist Church with the support of the congregation's pastor. With her was her 7-year-old son, Saul, an American citizen.



Federal officials said there is no right to sanctuary in a church under U.S. law and nothing to prevent them from arresting her. But they would not say exactly what they planned to do, or when.

The protest raised the spectacle of agents barging into a church and dragging her out.

"She is the face of the movement," said Emma Lozano, executive director of the Chicago immigration-rights group Centro Sin Fronteras, who was at the church with Arellano.

In Phoenix, Martin Manteca of Mi Familia Vota said Hispanic activist groups were organizing a vigil in her support. Lozano said an event also was scheduled in Detroit.

Arellano also has attracted attention from political officials including Chicago Mayor Richard Daley, who has voiced his support. And Dolores Huerta, a leader in the effort to organize the nation's farm workers, plans to come to Chicago to show her support, according to Huerta's daughter, Alicia.

A few dozen supporters gathered at the storefront church, sitting in the pews and praying for Arellano. But the doors were not barricaded, and there were no apparent efforts to fortify the church.

Arellano, who is president of United Latino Family, which lobbies for families that could be split by deportation, had been ordered to appear at the immigration office in Chicago at 9 a.m. Tuesday, but instead went to the church, where she is an active member.

She said that if authorities want her, they will have to come and get her.

"My son is a U.S. citizen," she told reporters. "He doesn't want me to go anywhere, so I'm going to stay with him."

Pastor Walter Coleman said his congregation offered Arellano refuge after praying about her plight. Coleman said he does not believe Arellano should have to choose between leaving her son behind or removing him from his home.

"She represents the voice of the undocumented, and we think it's our obligation, our responsibility, to make a stage for that voice to be heard," he said.

Immigration and Customs Enforcement said there is nothing preventing the U.S. government from arresting her at the church.

"Ms. Arellano willfully violated U.S. immigration laws and is now facing the consequences of her actions by failing to report to immigration authorities," said agency spokeswoman Gail Montenegro. "We will arrest and deport her as required by law at an appropriate time and place."

Legal experts agreed that the traditional doctrine that people are protected from arrest in a church is not recognized under U.S. law.

But Joel Fetzer, associate professor of political science at Pepperdine University in California, said: "If the government comes in, it's going to look very jack-booted fascistic. It would look very bad."

Churches and synagogues also tried to offer sanctuary to illegal immigrants escaping civil war in El Salvador during the 1980s, a civil disobedience activity known as the Sanctuary movement. Susan Gzesh, a senior lecturer at the University of Chicago who assisted the churches and synagogues that offered sanctuary, said she does not believe federal authorities ever went into the churches to make arrests.

Arellano illegally crossed into the United States in 1997 and was deported shortly afterward. She returned within days, living for three years in Oregon before moving to Chicago in 2000. Arrested two years later at O'Hare Airport, where she was working as a cleaning woman, she was convicted of working under a false Social Security number and ordered to appear at the immigration office in Chicago.

Activists said her desire to come here to work and provide a better life for herself and her son illustrates why they believe the nation's immigration laws must be changed.

"She is a leader in the movement who has made the issue of family unity the key issue in the question of the undocumented," her pastor said. "That is the most sympathetic issue there is."

Others are not so sure.

"I don't think the immigration debate should be focused on a woman who ... disregards an order," said Carlina Tapia-Ruano, a Chicago lawyer and president of the American Immigration Lawyers Association.

Tapia-Ruano said she worries that Arellano's story will be used by extremists on both sides of the issue and cited as an example "of how illegals come here to be in flagrant disregard of our laws, and I don't think that's true."

http://www.breitbart.com/news/2006/08/16/D8JHRKAO2.html

added to homepage

http://www.alipac.us/modules.php?name=N ... =1&thold=0

But Joel Fetzer, associate professor of political science at Pepperdine University in California, said: "If the government comes in, it's going to look very jack-booted fascistic."

Why didn't ICE take this woman into custody as soon as her whereabouts were known? Of course now it WILL be a spectacle if they go in and detain her because the pro's have had plenty of time to mobilize and put out their rallying crys! Could it be that ICE has orders to stand down for this very reason?


This definitely doesn't pass my smell test.

http://www.chicagotribune.com

EDITORIAL

Elvira Arellano and the law

Published August 17, 2006


Elvira Arellano came to this country from Mexico seeking a better life, but she came here illegally. For five years, she lived fairly anonymously, like millions of other illegal immigrants. She worked as a cleaning woman at O'Hare International Airport until she was arrested in 2002 during a post-Sept. 11 security sweep at the nation's airports.

Last week, the Department of Homeland Security gave Arellano, 31, a deadline for deportation. Instead of reporting to homeland security by 9 a.m. Tuesday, though, she took refuge in Adalberto United Methodist Church in the Humboldt Park neighborhood. She has said she will stay in the church indefinitely, in pure defiance of immigration authorities. They say they have the legal right to arrest her in the church and will do so at a time of their choosing.

Arellano is hardly anonymous now. In fact, she has become something of a local symbol for those who most ardently believe U.S. immigration law is patently unfair.

That doesn't mean her example is helpful to their cause. It is not.

Arellano was arrested and deported once before and re-entered the country illegally. She was found to have used a fake Social Security number to work.

And yet she has benefited from some extraordinary political support, which few illegal immigrants get to enjoy. She won the help of members of the Illinois congressional delegation, who rallied around her because her 7-year-old son, Saul, a U.S. citizen, has ADHD and other health problems. She has been granted three stays of deportation since 2003. U.S. Rep. Luis Gutierrez (D-Ill.) sent a letter to President Bush on Wednesday asking that Arellano be granted yet another stay.

But Sen. Dick Durbin, Sen. Barack Obama and others have said there is nothing more they can do for her. Because her son's condition has improved, some of those sympathetic to her cause suggest that another stay of deportation cannot be justified.

And so, she stands in public defiance of U.S. law--a symbol, as well, for those who say the only problem with immigration law is that it is not tough enough on those who violate it.

Arellano would seem to have little chance of remaining in the U.S. legally even if Congress were to approve a new law that provided "earned citizenship" for some illegal immigrants--which this page has strongly supported.

There is no argument for political asylum in her case. Arellano would not be at risk of persecution if she were to return to Mexico.

Arellano's supporters are calling for a moratorium on deportation until Congress passes its now-shelved immigration reform. They are not going to prevail on that. The U.S. is not about the business of suspending the enforcement of law while it mulls whether to change the law.

Many illegal immigrants face the same situation as Arellano. Few get the breaks she has received in the last few years. They are all subject to U.S. law, as is Arellano.

It is time for her to abide by that law.

----------

WHAT DO YOU THINK?

- Should Elvira Arellano be deported or allowed to stay in the U.S.? E-mail us by 2 p.m. Thursday at ctc-response@tribune.com with "immigrant" in the subject line. Include your name, hometown and contact information. Responses will be published online and in Friday's Voice of the People.

The sob story version.

http://www.suburbanchicagonews.com/hera ... S10817.htm

Standing firm by a friend

By Andrea Hein
STAFF WRITER

CHICAGO — Standing by a friend's side instead of working for three days is not an easy choice for an illegal immigrant who survives on cash from odd jobs.

But Rockdale resident Toribio Barrera is not about to abandon Elvira Arellano, an illegal immigrant fighting her deportation from a Chicago church.

To do so would be to give up everything for which they have marched and demonstrated.

"We have been working together for more than a year," Barrera said.

Arellano is a mother who took refuge inside Adalberto United Methodist Church on Tuesday instead of reporting to immigration officials who planned to deport her back to Mexico.

Barrera is the man who called himself "Juan" in a previous Herald News story regarding illegal immigration: He came to the U.S. 13 years ago with hopes of joining the Navy.

Now he just wants to stay in the country.

Barrera said he and other activists gathered outside Chicago immigration offices Monday to demonstrate and pray on Arellano's behalf.

When Arellano turned to the church instead of turning herself in, Barrera and others decided to hold vigil with her.

They have talked and prayed as a steady stream of supporters have come and gone.

And they have waited, anticipating the entrance by federal officials to arrest Arellano.

"I was worried last night because I thought for sure that they were going to come," said Barrera, who speaks English.

When Barrera first talked to The Herald News, he was optimistic that elected officials would come through for him and other illegal immigrants.

"Before this I thought there was going to be immigration reform," Barrera said.

He's not so sure now.

"They have the power. In this case they are just (giving) the runaround," Barrera said.

The 33-year-old also has a vested interest in the outcome of Arellano's situation.

On Oct. 9, Barrera will go before an immigration judge and unless the law changes, he too will be deported.

For now, all he can do is pray.

"A friend of mine told me 'God will provide,'" Barrera said.


- View Andrea Hein's Web log at blogs.suburbanchicagonews.com/ahein/ or contact her at (815) 729-6018 or ahein@scn1.com.

08/17/06

http://washingtontimes.com/national/200 ... -9713r.htm

Illegal alien seeks refuge in church
Published August 17, 2006

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------


CHICAGO (AP) -- Pro-immigration groups across the country are taking up the cause of an illegal alien who is trying to take refuge in a Chicago church rather than submit to deportation to Mexico.

Elvira Arellano, 31, was holed up for a second day yesterday at Aldalberto United Methodist Church with the support of the congregation's pastor. With her was her 7-year-old son, Saul, a U.S. citizen.

Federal officials said there is no right to sanctuary in a church under U.S. law and nothing to prevent them from arresting her. But they would not say what they planned to do, or when. The protest raised the spectacle of agents barging into a church and dragging her out.

"She is the face of the movement," said Emma Lozano, executive director of the Chicago immigration rights group Centro Sin Fronteras, who was at the church with Miss Arellano, who is president of United Latino Family, which lobbies for families that could be split by deportation.

In Phoenix, Martin Manteca of Mi Familia Vota said Hispanic activist groups were organizing a vigil in her support. Miss Lozano, whose group name means "center without borders," said an event also was scheduled in Detroit.

Miss Arellano also has attracted attention from political officials including Chicago Mayor Richard M. Daley, who has voiced his support. A few dozen supporters gathered at the storefront church, sitting in the pews and praying for Miss Arellano. But the doors were not barricaded, and there were no apparent efforts to fortify the church.

Miss Arellano had been ordered to appear at the immigration office in Chicago at 9 a.m. Tuesday, but instead went to the church, where she is an active member. She said that if authorities want her, they will have to come and get her.

"My son is a U.S. citizen," she told reporters. "He doesn't want me to go anywhere, so I'm going to stay with him."

The Rev. Walter Coleman said his congregation offered Miss Arellano refuge after praying about her plight. Mr. Coleman said he does not think Miss Arellano should have to choose between leaving her son behind or removing him from his home.

"She represents the voice of the undocumented, and we think it's our obligation, our responsibility, to make a stage for that voice to be heard," he said.

Immigration and Customs Enforcement said there is nothing to prevent the U.S. government from arresting Miss Arellano at the church.

"Ms. Arellano willfully violated U.S. immigration laws and is now facing the consequences of her actions by failing to report to immigration authorities," said agency spokeswoman Gail Montenegro. "We will arrest and deport her as required by law at an appropriate time and place."

Joel Fetzer, associate professor of political science at Pepperdine University in California, said: "If the government comes in ... it would look very bad."

Miss Arellano illegally crossed into the United States in 1997 and was deported shortly afterward. She returned within days, living for three years in Oregon before moving to Chicago in 2000. Arrested two years later at Chicago O'Hare International Airport, where she was working as a cleaning woman, she was convicted of working under a false Social Security number and ordered to appear at the immigration office in Chicago.

http://vivirlatino.com/2006/08/17/elvir ... tivist.php

Elvira Arellano : Illegal, Alien, Activist?
09:00 H | Topics: Chicago - Controversia - Immigration - Justice

By now you should know that 31 year old single Mexican mami Elvira Arellano has been inside Aldalberto United Methodist Church in Chicago with her 7 year old son for three days now. She is not keeping her promise to a santo. she is keeping her promise to her child that she will stay with him and be a mami and confronting the U.S. government that seeks to deport her. Her son Saul was born in the United States and because of that is a U.S. citizen. Earlier this week Elvira was ordered to appear at an immigration office but instead she invoked an old school idea, taken by many activists before her, that churches are sanctuaries and went inside with her child. Elvira knows what's up. She's the President of United Latino Family, which lobbies for families that could be split by deportation. She is now one of those families.

The Feds have said that Elvira being inside a church doesn't really protect her and that they could go inside the church at any time to enforce their deportation order. We will all have to wait and see if they will dare. In the meantime however, it is interesting to analyze the different ways the media is covering the going ons, especially the English language media. Many have chosen to use the adjective "illegal" to modify Elvira. The Washington Times goes so far as to call Elvira an "Illegal Alien" in it's headline. Two news outlets, KVOA News 4 out of Arizona and the Chicago Sun-Times, focus not on Elvira the woman but on her actions, calling her an "activist". Spanish language media chooses to call her undocumented, label her by her nationality, or her maternal status (no doubt invoking a linkage between her and the ultimate mujer to many Latinos - la Virgincita herself).

Regardless of what adjective is used to label Elvira Arellano, all eyes should be on Chicago and those that are in the Chicago area should say presente to bear witness to what's going down and what will come.

When Barrera first talked to The Herald News, he was optimistic that elected officials would come through for him and other illegal immigrants.

Sorry Barrera, those aren't your "elected officials" and it's American citizens they had better come through for. If not, they could find themselves sitting in the pew next to you asking God to assist them in seeing the error of their ways.

Nodoby has the right to break the law simply because it is to their benefit and/or the benefit of their children. Do I have the right to steal $10,000 to pay for food or my child's education? If this were the case, society would be a free-for-all!

And since it is in the best interests of the child to remain with the parent, the child must go too. If the child is a U.S. citizen, s/he would presumably be able to re-enter the U.S. lawfully once attaining the age of 18.

For her to hide in a church is like the Iraqi insurgents who hide in mosques. The principle she stands for is every bit as dangerous to society as those insurgents.

The Associated Press article says that Arellano is "president of United Latino Family, which lobbies for families that could be split by deportation." How dare somebody unlawfully present in this country seek to influence our political process.

On Paul Harvey today, he said that she was "facing opposition from members of her own church". They said "it was cheating."

Politicians are putting WAY too much emphasis on "illegal pandering". I certainly don't think the vast majority of legal Hispanics agree with any of this. Why should someone, who went thru all the channels, jump up and down when the same thing is handed to them for free. It doesn't make sense, unless someone has an illegal relative. Imagine someone camping out and standing in line for days to see a popular movie or group and then cheering for people that sneaked in the back door. I don't think so....they would be enraged, especially if the management gave them free popcorn and candy too.