Blog
A prayer for those arrested in protest
Jul 30, 2010
Here is a prayer we received from Rev. Leela Sinha in coastal Maine. Thank you for standing on the side of love in solidarity.
May you be whole and well tonight;
may your presence move hearts, open doors, break chains, and sound a call for freedom,
the golden torch that calls us to integrity as a people united,
integrity as a nation,
values brought to life by laws
that give everyone a chance
no matter who we are
no matter what language we speak,
no matter what stress or circumstance cast us upon these shores,
we shall judge and be judged “on the content of our character
and not on the color of our skin.”
May your courage inspire courage,
may your pride inspire pride.
May your bodies be your voices
and may your voices stand for all of us,
that we may strive to be the country
that we claim to be.
May you call us to our highest ideals.
May we all, every one, hear you
in that place where the still, small voice
echoes from mountaintop
to desert
to ocean
and it cannot be denied.
May we not close our ears,
nor deny what we hear.
Amen.
A reflection on solidarity actions in Arizona
Jul 30, 2010
At the end of the day yesterday, people gathered outside of the Maricopa County jail house for a candlelight vigil to stand in solidarity with the 83 people who were arrested in protest of the racist anti-immigrant law SB 1070 and the culture that dehumanizes undocumented immigrants.
Many of those present wore their yellow Standing on the Side of Love shirts. UUA Moderator Gini Courter recounts her perspective on yesterday’s events. She tells us, “This is what it means to be a religious movement in a democracy.” Yesterday, July 29th, 2010 was the day that Arizona’s SB 1070 was put into effect.
More >Rev Frederick-Gray offers a few comments
Jul 29, 2010
Rev Frederick-Gray offers a few comments as she’s being removed by police.
More >Judge’s ruling on Arizona’s SB 1070 is a call to action
Jul 29, 2010
Yesterday an Arizona judge placed an injunction on parts of Arizona’s racist immigration law, a move that temporarily blocked some of the most oppressive components of SB 1070. This is a clear victory for love, and a welcome outcome. As a result of the ruling, Arizona law enforcement will not enforce several of the worst parts of the law.
Rev. Peter Morales and Rev. Susan Frederick-Gray join others in civil disobedience against SB1070 in PhoenixHowever, some parts of Arizona’s SB 1070 are still going into effect. Starting today, it is now a misdemeanor crime to knowingly transport or hire an undocumented individual in Arizona. Can you imagine a U.S. citizen being arrested for taking her undocumented mother to the hospital?
Sherriff Joe Arpaio and other law enforcement are still empowered by agreements with the federal government to “enforce” immigration law and deputize people. One Arizona Sherriff has even recruited for deputies on “pro-white” radio stations. As Sheriff Arpaio stated, the ruling will not stop his home raids and workplace sweeps, raids and sweeps that separate children from their parents and tear communities apart.
It is important that we continue to stand with people of color and make sure that anti-family and anti-love laws like SB 1070 are not implemented in other states.
Yesterday, Standing on the Side of Love participated in an action at a local establishment to demand that management pay the Mexican workers whose wages they have withheld for weeks. You can watch video from the action here. Today, SSL is taking part in the National Day of Non-Compliance with SB 1070. You can follow our updates on Twitter and Facebook.
Almost 200 Standing on the Side of Love supporters from across the country are on the ground in Phoenix today, and more than 20 UU clergy have been arrested including UUA President Rev. Peter Morales and Rev. Susan Frederick-Gray in solidarity with people of color against SB 1070 and a broken immigration system.
Can you join us in action?
While several of the worst components of the SB 1070 bill were temporarily stopped by Judge Bolton’s injunction yesterday, the broken immigration system that precipitated SB 1070 remains in place and will continue to break up families and instill fear in immigrant communities.
It will take all of us standing on the side of love with immigrant families to overcome the injustice of the immigration system to make sure that families do not continue to be torn apart. It will be a long battle, but working together, we can overcome oppression to achieve fair and just comprehensive immigration reform.
In solidarity,
Dan Furmansky,
Campaign Director
Standing on the Side of Love
P.S. Dozens of communities across the country are hosting prayer vigils and similar actions today and this weekend to stand in solidarity with immigrant families as part of the National Weekend of Prayer and Action for Immigrant Justice.
You can still join a vigil near you:
http://www.standingonthesideoflove.org/ssl-for-az-wherever-you-are/
More >Yesterday: Non-compliance Action Takes Place in Downtown Phoenix: “STOP THE HATE”
Jul 29, 2010
This post originally appeared on AltoArizona.com
This afternoon in downtown Phoenix, Arizona, four brave protestors took unannounced action to send a message against hate. The protestors climbed a 20-story construction crane, walked out on its arm and dangled hundreds of feet above the ground to reveal a huge banner denouncing 287(g) and SB 1070.
Crowds gathered below on the street corners, chanting slogans of solidarity and the protestors responded with raised fists (see above right photo). Police, fire department and metro transportation workers secured the area, stopping traffic for at least 2.5 hours. Media was present and documented the action as well as interviewed by-standers. Protestors eventually climbed back up, removed the banner and proceeded to descend from the crane while Phoenix PD waited to apprehend the four individuals on the ground. This action was part of non-complance, non-violent non-participation strategies…actions like this will continue until SB1070 is eliminated and local/federal immigration enforcement agreements like 287(g) and S-Comm are rescinded.
- Alto Arizona Team
More >
