Refugees

The Painful Process of Authentic Compassion

emilyrgeorge6 Comments

I like to think of myself as a curator of friendships.  A content specialist of hearts painted gold, who brave the desert creatures and stay awake through the Gethsemane of the soul.

I collected this one heart over a decade ago and tucked her carefully inside my own.  She had just returned from the West Bank where she had made her home with Palestinian Arabs.  Returned to a Midwestern town, to a small, Caucasian, pro-Israel Church, full of cars with W bumper stickers in the parking lot, where people lined up asking her, “How was Pakistan?”  And her face would glow the color of her hair and she would smile and graciously say, “It was fine,” and then swallow a fiery lump down in her throat.

That summer, I watched as she found healing and solace while tending to her melliferous bees.  We would spread fresh honey from bell jars on bread, and I would ask her question after question about the conflict within.  She would point out specific regions on the map that was hung above my bed, finding hope when I began to understand.

Little did she know that the West Bank was just the beginning of the constant cycle of suffering, compassion, and freedom that would be her life.  She wandered the streets of Calcutta, among the heroin-addicts and slum dwellers.  Built shelters in Sri Lanka when the tsunami decimated Southeast Asia.  Became homeless when Katrina blew in from the Atlantic.  Joined me as I worked with sex slaves in the red light district of Bangkok.  Provided food and housing to refugees in Darfur.  Went back to Jordan.  Moved to Afghanistan.  Fled when her colleagues were kidnapped.  Sought asylum in Amsterdam.  And then resettled in Kenya.

She has been homeless and displaced; a refugee and a wanderer.  She has seen more brutality inflicted upon the human race than most people in this generation.  She has stared at the heavens and begged for rain and then seen a small black cloud the size of a hand appear.  She is covered in spiritual DEET, capable of entering into the darkest of territories and coming out, afflicted, but not crushed.   She has died over and over again and has held tightly to the only thing this life can give to her.

And when she writes to me now, from her small cottage in Kenya, and describes the spiritual trenches with tears flowing freely and with intention, I can easily share with her about the kid I know who contracted HIV from his uncle, my college friend who was raped and is now with child, and the aching of my own broken heart from love that has been lost.

Because she walks around with her own broken heart, cracked from the hundreds of times she has known and loved and suffered.  Because she sits with me, a million miles away, but in the same Garden.  Crying out with me that the cup would be taken, dreading the constant request for another death that will ultimately bring life.  A woman who would never fall asleep while I am sweating blood, because she is sweating blood, too.

And it is for her that I write this, to remind her that he is coming and has overcome.  That where sin abounds, grace abounds all the more.  That sorrow and sighing will pass away.  That blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.  That a bruised reed he will not break.  That by his stripes we are healed.  That we will no longer be called “forsaken.”  That we will run and not grow weary.  That there will be a garment of praise.  That there is always more. That the sons of Satan will fall down at our feet and confess that he has always loved us.

So, let us lift the cup and drink quickly now.

Here’s to her.

And here’s to Him.

http://whitneyfry.wordpress.com/

Department of Homeland Security or Department of Homeland Absurdity?

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Currently, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is the sole authority on deciding whether asylum seekers are granted refuge in the United States. A checks and balances system does not exist to ensure that asylum seekers’ rights are being preserved. Consequently, asylum seekers are detained for indefinite periods until the DHS determines whether they are a national threat.

Here’s a brief overview of U.S. Policies Governing Asylum Seekers:  Before the terrorist attacks on September 11, the Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) oversaw the entry of legal and illegal immigrants into the United States. It was not an independent entity. The INS worked cooperatively with the United Nations, the Department of State, and the Department of Health and Human Services. It was divided into four divisions that were responsible for operations and policy management, detention enforcement, and naturalization services.

In the aftermath of 9/11, national security escalated. In an attempt to protect the U.S. from terrorists entering the country unnoticed, President Bush transferred all services and enforcement missions provided by the INS and border control to the Department of Homeland Security in March 2003. The DHS became “jailer and judge.” Parole decisions are made by the DHS, which is the detaining authority. There is no independent immigration judge to determine if these decisions are just and there is no policy ensuring prompt review of parole requests.

The combination of these factors results in enormous numbers of asylum seekers being detained for excessive amounts of time. In 2003, 16,000 asylum seekers were detained within the United States. Average length was 10 months with the longest reported period being 3.5 years. Presently, there are approximately 5,000 asylum seekers being detained daily.

The United States must provide a more objective review process; warranting that asylum seekers are not detained longer than necessary and human rights are upheld. In order to reduce prolonged detention of asylum seekers, a bill must be passed through Congress mandating review of parole requests within 48 hours by an independent immigration judge.  Additionally, Human Rights First proposed the idea of creating a refugee protection position within the Department of Security to ensure that the DHS upholds international and national standards for protecting refugees. Someone with experience in asylum and judicial law should fill this position. This person would serve as a liaison between “judge and jailer” and advocate for asylum seekers.

Finally, an Immigration and Refugee Board should be established to ensure that decisions made by the DHS are processed justly and efficiently. This board should possess compassionate and culturally competent members committed to preserving the safety and dignity of asylum seekers. This board is necessary to hold the DHS accountable as they process cases seeking asylum.

It is absurd that the Department of Homeland Security is the sole authority determining the fate of asylum seekers. Asylum seekers deserve to have their cases objectively reviewed by an institution committed to providing them with bona fide refuge. An accountability system must be established to uphold the personal rights of asylum seekers – keeping them from prolonged detention. Although national security needs to be preserved, human rights need not and must not be violated in the process.