Sennett Federated Church Plans Immigration Event
On Sunday, March 4, at 3 p.m., Sennett Federated Church will host a discussion on immigration in America. The event will open with panelists sharing their story and how immigration policy affects their lives. Then we will open the gathering to your questions to help everyone better understand the reality and myths around the topic of immigration today.
Panelists include: Fabiola Ortiz Valdez, who immigrated to the USA and now serves as the Manager of Member Engagement for the New York Immigration Coalition; Elizabeth, a current DACA recipient and member of the Workers’ Center of Central New York; and Arely, a member of the Workers’ Center of Central New York and the wife of an activist and organizer who has been detained by ICE.
Ms. Ortiz Valdez commented, “In light of the current attacks to our communities, now more than ever is important to know that many of our immigrant brothers and sisters in the U.S. are being torn away from their families.”
The goal of the event is not to take a particular side or recommend a specific course of action but to provide facts and information so people can understand how this issue affects them and what immigration policy means to those who are most affected by the decisions of our political leadership. All questions are welcome as long as everyone remains respectful of the other people in attendance.
Rev. Dr. George Huffsmith, pastor of the Sennett Federated Church, said, “It has been my experience that understanding comes best when there is dialogue and a personal relationship with people most affected by the topic of discussion.” This event is free and open to the public and will be held at the church at 7777 Weedsport-Sennett Road (at the corner of Turnpike Road) in Auburn, New York.
Sennett Federated Church has a history dating back to 1799 and is affiliated with the American Baptist Churches USA and the Presbyterian Church USA. The church holds services each Sunday morning at 10 a.m. For more information, you can contact the church at 315-252-4936
I know this is an old article, but I would have had a few questions for this group. Why did this discussion come up at the time it did instead of when it started happening a long time ago? Why is the blame being put on the “current administration” instead of previous administrations that did the same thing? Why is it so hard to expect that citizens of the U.S. want people coming to the U.S. legally? What makes coming to U.S. illegally any different than a person who breaks into someone else’s house and steals something that doesn’t belong to them? And those same people think it’s okay for one group to break the law and the other not?
These are the questions I would have asked. I would love to see a transcript of the meeting to see if those questions were answered.
Thank you for your interest. This came up when it did because the topic was in the headlines. Trump had ended the executive order on DACA and a judge had stayed the order. There seemed to be competing “facts” about the topic, so the effort was to 1) Find our what was true and what was not. 2) Allow people to ask any questions they had on the topic. 3) Let someone who in in the US with DACA protections tell their story so we are not just talking in the abstract but recognizing that we are talking about real humans. Elizabeth came to the US at 14. She was brought by her parents. Under the DACA program she is allowed to work. She is now married and has two children. Her husband and children are all US citizens. She pays her taxes and her mortgage. She show up for all her hearings, pays all fees and files all paperwork to stay in the program. She was asked why she had not applied for citizenship. She said she would love to but is not allowed under the DACA program. Without the protections of DACA she could be deported with or without reason or notice. She said she would love an opportunity for citizenship, but short of that she would like to be secure that she could continue to live with her husband and children with some sense of stability in the home and community they call home.
There is no transcript of the meeting. Lots of questions were asked in a curious but civil tone. I think it is safe to say that everyone learned something from the experience and had a lot to think about.