I never knew my dad – he’s been locked up my whole life! CPS took the kids!

There is no work hommie! I am going to slang (sell drugs) for a minute, I really don’t want to…it’s eating me up Kev. I’ll come back to the men’s group,   I miss you guys.

Our baby is dying, can you come baptize her? You’re the only that can come, I will let the detective guarding the door know.

West Side City shot up my nana’s house, my primo got shot in the chest, but he’s going to make it.

My little homie OD’d!

We took care of those fools Kev!”

These are the questions and the realities I encounter on a daily basis in my work with the Diocese of Phoenix’ Prison Ministry. These experiences and emotions build up, forming a beat in my head, a beat that doesn’t stop. Sometimes it stops at the break of dawn…but quickly starts again.

In the desert I am looking for the water to pool up, but it won’t; it just dries up into the crusted earth. Will Grace do the same? I feel the pain of these with whom I work. My tears fall with theirs. However, at the end of the day I get to go home to my little oasis.  My tears cease, theirs continue like rain.

Grace, where are you? Our people are dry lipped.
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“What is the solution?”

That was the question posed by Geography of Grace commenter Mom Rose, in an offline email. Her honest questions and thoughtful interaction really touched me – I hope I am as focused on learning as she is! I am young and foolish and too often think I know something, but I think there might be a lesson in her life for me…

In terms of solutions, I really recommend the study done by the Cato Institute (here) as a starting point – they outline a very convincing argument.

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Why are we so compulsively obsessed with immigration?

It wasn’t long ago when we didn’t see immigration headlines daily in our newspapers, isolated violent incidents connected to immigrants in Italy and Arizona didn’t result in weeks of debate about the larger issue of immigrant criminality, and Lou Dobbs had something else to talk about. Why now? What has changed? What are we so mad about?

A law recently passed by the state of Oklahoma enforces federal immigration laws in a more draconian fashion than any other state to date. In short: it prohibits driver’s licensing, access to government benefits, deputizes local police to do immigration work, and most importantly, as a youth pastor working with many undocumented youth, it prohibits the sheltering and transporting of the undocumented. Sheltering and transporting are vague, ambiguous terms making any association with immigrants legally precarious.

Oklahoma church leaders from across the denominational spectrum have spoken out saying they will disobey this new legislation and continue on with their ministry as per usual.

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