"Do unto others as you would have them do unto you."
Among my many projects, I’ve been doing volunteer Spanish translation for No More Deaths. Much of the time, it’s just administrative notices and event announcements—all necessary and worthwhile, but pretty much boilerplate stuff. Every once in a while, though, I get an assignment that really touches the heart. I just completed one of those this week, centered around a woman named Alexa.
Continue reading ““You are not alone”: Messages of love for Alexa”
Good news, everyone! Earlier today, my friend Scott Warren was acquitted of both felony harboring charges for helping two young migrants in need. As Warren said to a crowd of happy supporters outside the courthouse after the verdict was rendered, “The government failed in its attempt to criminalize basic human kindness.” Hallelujah!
For more, check out this article and this news video.
The retrial of No More Deaths humanitarian aid worker Scott Warren begins today. As most of you know, I worked with Scott in January 2018 and was part of the events that led to his arrest. Indeed, the Border Patrol still has my laptop computer and other personal items confiscated as “evidence,” though they have yet to even acknowledge this.
Warren faces up to ten years in prison for providing humanitarian aid to two migrants, even though such aid is perfectly legal under US and international law. (The specific charge is “harboring,” which is not what humanitarian aid workers do.)
For more on the case and the larger issues involved, below are two articles of interest (the first shared with me by my friend Sue Costello). The third item below is a notice from No More Deaths providing instructions for those who want to support Scott in the courtroom in Tucson:
1) They Tried to Save the Lives of Immigrants Fleeing Danger. Now They’re Facing Prosecution
My good friend Sue Costello recently shared with me the inspiring story of Derek Black and Matthew Stevenson. The short version: Black was a young white nationalist leader going to a progressive college incognito, and Stevenson was (and is) an Orthodox Jew who invited Black to weekly Shabbat dinners with friends after his white nationalist ties were publicly revealed. This invitation set into motion a two-year process of deep conversation and deepening friendship that ultimately led Black to publicly renounce his white nationalist views. The two of them are models of what one of their interviewers, echoing Hannah Arendt, calls “deliberative friendship”—something I think we need to cultivate now more than ever.
Continue reading “Derek Black and Matthew Stevenson: The power of deliberative friendship”
In my last post about the many hats I’m wearing these days, I spoke of my role as “cat care specialist.” Unfortunately, I have some sad news to report in that regard: The vet visit I referred to turned out to be the beginning of an unexpected end. Our kitty, Kiara, died on Saturday night, probably of kidney failure. She lived to the ripe old age of seventeen.
While the US is awash in talk of impeachment (long overdue, in my opinion), Patricia and I are keeping very busy here in Mexico. Patricia is much in demand as a writer, speaker, panelist, and workshop presenter on immigration issues. Since she’s got a lot on her plate and she’s out of town a lot, I’ve happily settled into work as her research assistant, written English translator, house husband, and cat care specialist. Together we are doing our part to cultivate a culture of peace.
Continue reading “Together doing our part to cultivate a culture of peace”
Update on September 27, 2019: Good news! While the legal case behind the Flores Exhibits is still pending, today a judge in another case blocked the Trump Administration’s attempt to eliminate the Flores Settlement Agreement. Read about the ruling here.
I want to share with you something that is hard to face, but that I think we need to face squarely and do something about: the devastating impact of US immigrant detention on children.
I recently came across a website that provides a powerful and unforgettable window into the trauma that children are currently experiencing in US immigrant detention: a collection of video testimonies called the Flores Exhibits.
Continue reading “The Flores Exhibits: A window into the trauma of children in immigrant detention”
My dear friend Sue Costello shared an experience with me that was so moving I invited her to share it with others here. (She’s a regular reader of this blog.) I didn’t know anything about “honor walks” before, and I’m so glad to hear about this end-of-life ritual that is such a seemingly small thing yet brings so much light to an otherwise dark moment. Sue’s write-up is below. Thank you so much, Sue, for sharing your beautiful story with us!
As I’m sure you know if you’ve been following the news, Hurricane Dorian has devastated the Bahamas and impacted the eastern US as well. If you’d like to help in the relief efforts, especially with donations, I found a Washington Post article with some good links. Just click here.
Let our loving thoughts, prayers, and actions go to everyone impacted by this horrific event.
I had a wonderful time in Los Angeles at the Global Homeboy Network Gathering on August 11-14. It’s an experience I will cherish for the rest of my life, and an event I’d definitely like to go to again. There’s so much I could say that anything I write about the Gathering will be woefully inadequate. But I can at least touch on the highlights. Here goes…
