Vigil Outside Detention Center in Richmond County, California, July 4, 2015, Silvia Brandon-Perez ARCWP

Vigil against the detention of migrant

July 4, 2015, from 11:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m.

West Detention Centre County

5555 Giant Highway, Richmond, CA

We dedicate esta vigil Jim Forsyth, WHO passed from this life on July 4, 2013, and our vigils and meetings Attended STI since inception. Brother Jim Forsyth, present!

WELCOME - BRANDON SILVIA PEREZ, WIDOW OF FORSYTH

Most of us know the story of a child born in a poor family in a village forgotten in occupied land. A family forced to flee persecution to seek asylum in a neighboring country like many others of "illegal aliens" called; a family living the life of the poor, the anawim. The boy Become a man, speaking on Behalf of the poor and against the excesses of the empire, tortured and murdered as a political criminal. Today we are experiencing the excesses of the empire Perhaps as never before, torturing and killing With new technology, but always with the approval of the state, Which justifies our actions With the seal of the "law." It is time to turn the tables and rid our world of the merchants of greed and death for our witness not constant violent.

• Psalm 121

I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills
                              Where Does My Help Come From?

My help cometh from the Lord,
Which made ​​heaven and earth .

I invite everyone to briefly introduce Themselves.

• Exodus 2

A man of the house of Levi married a Levite woman. The woman Became pregnant and had a are. She saw how beautiful it was and hid him for three months. When She Could not hide it any longer, she Took a basket made ​​of papyrus plants and covered with tar and pitch. She put the baby in it and it Placed Among the papyrus plants near the river Nile. Pharaoh's daughter opened the basket, looked at the baby and saw he was a child. She was crying, and she felt sorry for him. She said: "This is one of the Hebrew children . "

Today, women and men of other banks are sending children away to save Their Their Lives. They come to Us with security and food cravings and love of foreigners.

 1 Kings 8: 41-43

As for the foreigner Who is not of your people Israel, come from a distant land Because of your name  (for They Shall hear of your great name and your strong hand and your outstretched arm), and come and pray Toward this house,  you You hear in heaven, in your dwelling place, and do all for Which ACCORDING to the foreigner calls to you,

. If a stranger sojourn with you in your land, do not oppress him  as one born Among You That You Shall the stranger dwelleth with you, and You Shall love him as yourself; for you were strangers in the land of Egypt. I am the Lord your God . Leviticus 19: 33-34

Anthem: Here I am, Lord

Now let's hear Carolyn Scarr recite His beautiful poem about the immigration interview, more than 2000 years ago That poor family. The text of the poem is on our songs.

Young Iris speaks for July 4:

Thank you all for coming to the eve of the July 4 - the day of the independence of esta nation. The USA. is proud of freedom, liberty and justice for all, but today, we wonder - justice for Whom? Listening to These testimonies, we will Consider Often These narratives have, but are not really Often Heard. I ask That we be Able to hear With our ears, minds and hearts to see the ways in These unjust immigration laws Which Have Affected the people of our community, Because When a body part hurts, we all hurt.

The poem The New Colossus, Emma Lazarus inscribed permanently into the basis of the Statue of Liberty, we remember on This July 4th:

Not like the mythical Greek giant bronze,
With conquering astride from land to land members;
. Here in our sunset gates it was drenched yerguerá
A mighty woman with a torch, Whose flame
Is the imprisoned lightning, and her name.
Mother of Exiles. From her beacon-hand
Glows world-wide welcome; her mild eyes command
The twin cities frame the air-bridged harbor
"Beware, ancient lands, your storied pomp!" gritfa her.
"Give me your tired, your poor,
your huddled masses yearning to breathe free
, The wretched refuse of your teeming shore
Send These, the homeless, tempest-tost to me

I lift my lamp beside the golden door! "

Jake shares with us about the movement of pride ("Pride") and LGBTQ people and the detention of migrants, WHO suffer double humiliation for Their positions.

Responsorial reading based on the declaration of the rights of migrants from Annunciation House in El Paso, Texas

L: We are a nation of immigrants. We Gathered from the four corners of the earth.

A: We come from Mexico and the Philippines, from Central America, Ireland, Ethiopia and Iraq. We come to escape poverty and violence, fear, war, discrimination, political repression and economic hardship .

L: We leave to parents and children, and the heavens of Our Countries. We bring with us languages, pictures, phone numbers, backpacks, stories and hopes.

A: We walked day and night across the desert to cross the border. We Waited on the other side for the papers to cross. We jumped on trains, seen comrades fall, We have put our trust in coyotes and we Have Been abandoned by smugglers of Human Beings. Have we are what we eat .

L: We Have Been called illegal, wet, foreigners and terrorists. They surround us at work, leaving our homeless children. We are imprisoned and Deported from the cities in Which We have lived for decades.

A: We are math teachers and dishwashers, carpenters, translators, portrait artists and houses. We pick apples in Yakima, Washington. We wash dishes in restaurants in Minnesota. We rebuild homes in Louisiana to Hurricane Katrina. Taxes paid our salaries .

L: We send our children to school, wanting to learn and succeed and be safe. Nor do we forget the family members That Remain in Our Countries of birth: work hard to keep them as well. In some places, we are invisible. But look for us, Because we are here. We are some twelve million.

R : We bring our work, our children, the rich textures of our cultures, and an opportunity for each of us, That is us and you, learn compassion and wisdom through met the stranger. We Should no longer be strangers .

All are your grandparents and your sons and daughters, Their past and Their future. As brothers and sisters in Christ, we affirm our humanity, dignity and courage. As children of one God, as heirs of the same land, we affirm our rights.

FURTHER READING:

We are a diverse group of people of many faiths, colors, creeds, lands. All sacred books constrain us to welcome the stranger among us.

"[Lord,] When we see you a stranger and Took thee in?" The King will reply, 'I tell you, whatever you did for one of the Least of These my brethren, you did it to me. "

Matthew 25: 38, 40

"Be not forgetful to entertain strangers, for by so doing some Have unwittingly entertained angels."

Hebrews 13: 2

" You, my brothers, Were called to freedom; only do not use liberty as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another.    For all the law in one word is brilliant: You Shall love your neighbor as yourself

Galatians 5: 13-14

"... You are no longer strangers and sojourners, but fellow Citizens With the saints and members of God's family."

Ephesians 2: 11-21

"And Those Who Have dignity and comfort Among You not swear not to give to relatives and the needy and Refugees in the cause of God. That forgive and show indulgence . "

The Surat an-Nur Noble Quran 24:22

"And do good to your parents and close relatives, and the orphans and the needy, and the neighbor from Among your own people, and the neighbor Who is a stranger, and the friend by your side, and the wayfarer, and Those Who legitimately POSSESS. Verily, Allah does not like any of Those Who, full of vanity, acts in a boastful way ... "

Quran An-Nisa 4:36

"Those Who Believed, and ADOPTED exile, and Fought for the Faith, With Their property and Their persons, in the cause of Allah and Those Who gave them asylum and help are all friends and protectors, one of another."

Al Anfal Koran 8:72

Prayers from abroad to abroad abroad (the Tikkun Community)

Oh God, remind us That we are part of a whole or part of the land of our ancestors and your future, Have We both borders or we do not,  we are  national and transnational, injured and uninjured. Let us be Citizens of a world Where love and respect are just borders. Amen.

Please the Spirit and the forces That created the world. No matter if our tradition Began With The God of Abraham, Isaac and Sarah, or of Ishmael and Hagar, or immigrants to the manger or manifestation as deep as the longing of the heart to Understand, still, hear our prayer for the displaced and out of place. We are Both hosts and guests, strangers and friends, in a shrinking world That Has Its source in you. Unite us in the arts of hospitality and mutual understanding. Amen.

Continue walking through the kindness of strangers, and help us make sure we know Who is whos abroad. Teach us to think globally from the safety of our own backyard - so we can learn to be truly safe. Amen

Prayer for our immigrant brothers and sisters, of Pax Christi

Blessed are You, Lord Jesus Christ.

Crossed all borders

Between divinity and humanity

to make your home with us.

Help us in welcoming newcomers,

Migrants and Refugees.

Blessed are You, God of all nations.

Bless our rich land

With the goods of creation

And Those made in your image.

Help us to be good stewards and builders of peace,

live as your children.

Blessed are You, Holy Spirit.

Work in the hearts of all

to Achieve harmony and goodwill.

Strengthen us to welcome them to the

other lands, cultures, religions,

so we can live in human solidarity

and hope.

God of all men, grant us the vision

to see your presence among us,

Especially in our migrant brothers and sisters.

Give us courage to open the door to our neighbors

and grace to build a society of justice.

Song: Peace and freedom

• Testimony of anyone Who wants to share experiences of immigration detention

• The prayers of the people to be answered by: Lord, hear our prayer

• Noise

Closing Hymn: Amazing Grace

This vigil was presented by the Ecumenical Institute for Peace and the South Hayward Parish, with the help of our musicians, Patti Connors, Joseph Daniel Pinell, Zwiekel Daniel ben Avram and I, and the collaboration of interns EBASE / FAME, David Iris and Jake . Thanks to All Who Attended!