As Pope spoke for illegals, U.S. arrested them

Sunday, April 20th 2008, 4:00 AM

'NO SE DEJEN vencer por el pesimismo ("Do not allow yourselves to be defeated by pessimism)," the Pope, speaking in Spanish, told the crowd that filled the brand-new Nationals Stadium in Washington

His words were addressed to the thousands of undocumented immigrants who, hard as they try, cannot see any reason for optimism. People who, despite years of contributing to society with their hard work and ingenuity, now find themselves increasingly dehumanized and persecuted.

The President and the Pope were all smiles and mutual praise during the visit of the leader of the Catholic Church to the White House. The occasion was a historic one, although for immigrants in the U.S., it was not devoid of irony.

"At the same moment that Pope Benedict XVI was admonishing President Bush that the U.S. must treat immigrants with dignity and humanity," said Douglas Rivlin of the National Immigration Forum, "the Bush administration was rounding up immigrant workers in raids in at least five states across the country."

Rivlin was referring to raids conducted Wednesday by Immigration and Customs Enforcement and the Department of Justice at poultry processing plants in five states. Close to 400 undocumented workers were detained.

Obviously, neither the Pope's presence nor his words were enough to deter federal authorities from raiding immigrant workplaces and homes.

Undocumented immigrants, though, are hoping for Benedict to miraculously revive such old-fashioned virtues as compassion and human solidarity - and real immigration reform along with them. But even if it does not happen, at least the Pope has raised his voice in their favor.

Speaking to 300 bishops at Washington's National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception, the Pope upheld the church's tradition of advocating for the foreign-born, asking them to welcome immigrants.

Also in Washington, the Pope went to the root of the problem. The only "solution," he said, is for people to be able to make a decent living in their own countries and not need to leave out of desperate poverty.

"The United States must help other countries develop themselves," the pontiff was reported to have said. To do so, he added, would benefit the whole world, the U.S. included.

At a time when the church, besieged by sexual scandals, is losing thousands of followers, a large number of devout immigrants, especially from Latin America, have kept the number of Catholics from dropping even more dramatically. And they welcomed the Pope's message.

One of them is a man from Guyana who came to New York 18 years ago. He's married with three children, and his whole family is undocumented except his youngest daughter, 15, who was born in the U.S. His name is not revealed for obvious reasons.

"Like every other immigrant, I came here for a better living for my family and myself, but it seems to be falling apart every day because I am illegal," he wrote in an anguished e-mail. "I get scared when I watch the news and it seems like I am going to die here like this. I feel like going back to my country sometimes, but then I start thinking about my kids and that thought goes away.

"I love this country and will do anything to get my green card, but it seems bleak at times. The Republicans, along with some Democrats, just don't care about humans in my situation, and the people on the right speak about family values. What a joke. ..."

Do not be defeated by pessimism, the Pope said. Good advice, but hard to follow in these times of unremitting hostility towards immigrants.

aruiz@nydailynews.com

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