Greensboro religious leaders unite to support immigration reform

Numerous Greensboro clergy gathered at Temple Emanuel this afternoon to speak in support of comprehensive immigration reform at the national level. Local non-profit FaithAction International House organized the press conference to show Senators Kay Hagan and Richard Burr the unified sentiment among various faith communities across the city.

Rev. David Fraccaro, FaithAction's executive director, predicted that the North Carolina senators will cast two of more decisive votes when Senate addresses the reform bill in June.

FaithAction staff members Ghaisha Yahaha-Mohammed and Endy Mendez (l-r) share their experiences since immigrating.

Rabbi Fred Guttman of Temple Emanuel

Rev. Jeff Paschal of Guilford Park Presbyterian Church

Rev. Clarence J. Shuford of St. Philip African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church

Pastors Raul Landa and Jonathan Lewis of Christ Wesleyan Church

Minister Wesley Morris and Rev. Dr. Nelson Johnson of Faith Community Church

After speaking, each cleric signed the FaithAction poster, which will be mailed to Sen. Hagan and Sen. Burr on Friday.

Greensboro to support "alternative ID" for immigrants

Police Chief Ken Miller signaled in a memo yesterday that the department is on board for a proposed "alternative ID" that would allow immigrants to obtain a form of identification that the police department would recognize, thereby reducing the need for an arrest in some cases.

The alternative ID is scheduled for launch in early July and will be formally announced at a community meeting on immigration hosted this Sunday at Saint Mary's Catholic Church. The impetus for the project — which mirrors a system used in Winston-Salem, Durham and numerous other cities around the country — grew out of immigrant community conversations with the police department facilitated by FaithAction International House. The nonprofit agency will be responsible for printing the IDs and working out a few small details, but the city is supportive and ready to move forward with the project. 

From the chief's memo: 

This initiative, while providing dignity and inclusiveness to immigrant residents in our community, will provide Greensboro Police officers with crucial information to better address and resolve legal and criminal concerns involving immigrants who may not otherwise have a valid form of ID. It can save tremendous time and resources by allowing officers to issue citations instead of having to make custodial arrests, keeping our officers in the field and available to respond to calls for service or doing proactive work.  

Read the full document here. 

YES! Weekly will have a full news story on the issue, including coverage of Sunday's meeting, in next week's issue. The alternative ID has been in the making since last year and would only be recognized by the Greensboro Police Department (and not, say, the Guilford County Sheriff's office or highway patrol) and is not a substitute for a drivers' license or other government-issued identification. The initiative is also supported by the city manager's office, Assistant City Manager Jim Westmoreland confirmed, adding that city council has been updated on the plan but will not have to vote to approve it.

Civil rights museum says no to immigration documentary

The International Civil Rights Center and Museum turns down a request by FaithAction and the Spirit of the Sit-In Movement Initiative to screen a documentary film about 287(g), a controversial immigration enforcement program that has been popular with some local law enforcement agencies over the past three years and that has been criticized as promoting racial profiling.

An unidentified staffer at Faith Action states three reasons the proposal didn't fly:

1. They don't want to work too closely with the Spirit of the Sit-In-Movement and confuse the public's understanding of the difference between their organizations.


2. 287g in Guilford County — they believe that this issue is too politically controversial at the local level for an organization as "young" as theirs who is concerned with the community reputation. Also, a county commissioner is on their board.


3. They aren't confident that it will ultimately make them any money. (If they knew that 10 people would join the museum because of this event, if we would pay rent for using the space, or if people would pay admission, they might do it.)

A writer for Greensboro Independent Media Center smells a whiff of hypocrisy, noting that the request was turned down despite that "one of the center's explicit aims is to engage in educational work around modern day issues related to civil rights and social justice."