Refugees – Houghton STAR

I believe we are a world of immigrants. Each of us is a guest here, sharing space with others who have lived here millennia longer than we have.

dan-bellarose As we have had relative rule over the earth for the past several thousands years, we have forgotten that fact, and considered ourselves natives here. Native like the trees are native, like the oceans, like the deep earth that has lived here as long as the world has existed. We consider ourselves masters of it all, and so we have forgotten where we came from. The Earth has shown us hospitality unheard of, allowing us to ravage and control, and to unleash powers previously unknown to its surface, yet we have reacted with pride to members of our own species who beg for the same, and have done much less.

So if we are a species of beings merely moving through this world, perhaps it is time we welcome those who have been displaced from their homelands.

Our society is at a crucial turning point for the way that we view immigrants. With wars more tragic than many we have seen before, and even the climate forcing people out of their homes, advantaged countries are in a position to be hospitable, and even vulnerable, and open their arms to those who have been disadvantaged most. The issue of immigration policy is most definitely a matter of justice. Many of the catastrophes that are driving people out of their own homes have some root in the intervention of the very countries who would consider closing their doors. The most publicized need currently is that of Syrian refugees, a prime example of the justice relationship of immigration.

However, refugees of war are not the only refugees who are experiencing the poor balance of an unjust international system. A much less-known type of refugee also experiences this justice relationship: the environmental refugee. The term “environmental refugee” was coined by Essam El-Hinnawi, who describes environmental refugees as “people who have been forced to leave their traditional habitat, temporarily or permanently, because of a marked environmental disruption (natural and/or triggered by people) that jeopardizes their existe dan-quote nce and/or seriously affects the quality of their life.” In 2012, more than 32 million people were forced to leave their homes due to natural disasters (to immigrate to other areas of their own country, or to other countries). The biggest cause of this mass migration of environmental refugees is the numerous global effects of climate change, a phenomenon largely driven by the industries of advantaged national giants such as the United States and China. Again, a serious justice relationship comes out in many situations of environmental refuge (although there have been some environmental refugees from my own country, as seen in the relocation of people from the Isle de Jean Charles in Louisiana).

Last year, I got to see one of the victims of this injustice speak at a symposium on environmental justice, a pastor from the island nation of Tuvalu. He spoke about how rising sea levels due to glacial melt from climate change will likely put his entire nation underwater within 50 years. Most of the nation is at sea-level, with their highest point being only 15 feet. If the ocean rises as much as it is predicted to rise in the next 50 years, he will be correct and the entire nation will have to relocate, leaving behind them a country which no longer exists. On top of their impending relocation, the country is already facing problems as they are continually ravaged by increasingly stronger tropical storms, and finding that their water table, which they rely on for clean drinking water, is completely salinated. As well as Tuvalu, the island nations of Kiribati, Vanuatu, and Maldives are expected to face resettlement within the next 50 years. Will we – the nations who have been most influential in causing these massive atmospheric changes – not open our borders to welcome those we have disadvantaged? Will we not do everything within our power to reverse the effects of our harmful lifestyles?

The world is ever-gracious to us lifelong immigrants, despite our extreme dependence on its resources, sometimes to the point of depletion. Will we not act with the same compassion towards our human brothers and sisters who ask for welcome? It is time for the advantaged nations of the world to change the justice relationship, and to welcome them with open arms.

Every year, the Faith and Justice Symposium challenges Houghton College students and the wider Houghton community to consider a social justice issue through the lens of the Christian faith they share. From Wednesday, September 21 to Friday, September 23, this year’s Symposium, entitled “Loving our Neighbors,” will explore immigration and refugee issues with two keynote speakers, a coffeehouse, four workshops, and the screening of a documentary.

fjs-quote The selection of a topic for the Faith and Justice Symposium is based both on student feedback from the past year and on what subjects are timely in wider society. This year’s topic was chosen by the Symposium Advisory Team, which includes Brian Webb, Sustainability Coordinator, and Kristina LaCelle-Peterson, Professor of Religion. According to LaCelle-Peterson, they agreed that the issue of immigrants and refugees was relevant due to the current political climate and refugee crisis.

“According to the UN there are over 65 million displaced people in the world, over 21 million of whom are refugees,” said La-Celle Peterson. “Christians around the world are reflecting on what they can do and what churches can do to help displaced people rebuild their lives. We want to be part of that effort.” She continued, “Even aside from a discussion of refugees, the issue of immigration is on people’s minds, especially because of the election cycle we’re in. We wanted the Symposium to be a place where we can move beyond the sound-bites which are often misleading or simply playing on fears, and reframe the discussion on Jesus’ call to love our neighbor.”

Webb and LaCelle-Peterson also invited the two keynote for this year’s Symposium: Jenny Yang, the Vice President of Advocacy and Policy at World Relief, and Danny Carroll, the Blanchard Professor of Old Testament at Wheaton College.

“We always try to get a diversity of keynote speakers,” said Webb. “We wanted people who could approach it from different angles. Jenny Yang is a well-known advocate on immigration justice issues. She’s highly regarded in Christian justice related circles on this issue. Danny Carroll comes more from an academic perspective, and has more of a theological background. He is a highly regarded scholar on biblical approaches to immigration.”

Yang will speak in chapel on Wednesday, while Carroll will both speak in chapel on Friday morning and will lead one of four workshops on Friday afternoon. The other three workshops will be led by speakers with a variety of perspectives on immigration and refugee issues. A representative from the Wesleyan Church will discuss the denomination’s approach, while an individual from the Christian Reform Church’s “Blessing Not Burden” campaign will discuss their organization’s attempt to reframe the immigration debate in terms of immigrants as a blessing to society. Another speaker who works in economic development in Buffalo will talk about how immigrants contribute to positive economic benefits of the country to which they immigrate.

“The workshops bring the opportunity to interact more closely with the speakers,” said Emily Barry ’17, who is part of this year’s Symposium Student Planning Committee. “It’s you in a classroom, so it’s more personal. They open it up for questions, and you can pick their brains how you want.”

On Thursday, the Symposium will present an “Engaging the Arts” coffeehouse organized by the student planning committee. It will feature live music and stories from Felix Madji, a second-year student at the Houghton in Buffalo campus and a refugee from the Central African Republic, as well as an art auction, participatory art project and free coffee. The Houghton College Gospel Choir will also make an appearance. This event is intended to help convey the human aspect of immigration and refugee issues, which is an overwhelming goal for this year’s Symposium.

“My hope is that students would see that these are real people with real stories,” said Webb. “Their stories matter, and we as Christians can value their stories and experiences in a way that uplifts the individual. Instead of arguing the ideology of an issue, I’d rather that people experience the real-life stories of ordinary people, and then frame their perspectives on the issue around what they learn.”

The wish to showcase the stories of real people is also why the Symposium will screen the film “Documented” on Friday. The documentary features Jose Antonio Vargas, a Pulitzer-Prize winning journalist who came out as an undocumented immigrant in a New York Times Magazine cover story in 2011. Webb believes Vargas’s story is an especially powerful one.

“His story is actually what changed me 180 degrees on the immigration issue,” said Webb. “Just hearing his experiences as an undocumented individual helped me see this a really different light than I had grown up with.”

The Symposium, “Immigration and Refugees: Loving our Neighbors,” will begin on Wednesday in chapel with Jenny Yang, and continue through Friday. The full schedule is available on the Houghton College website.