During the Cosecha cultural event, SECOM announces it will also be a Sanctuary space for undocumented immigrants

Last night, Movimiento Cosecha hosted the second event in their 4 days of immigrant resistance. Yesterday, I posted about the May Day march and in today’s post I want to talk about the Cosecha cultural event and the Sanctuary announcement.

It is always vitally important for those that are engaged in resistance and movement work to engage in building community. Last night’s cultural event organized by Movimiento Cosecha did just that.

First, there was the great food. Second, there was amazing music and dancing. Third, there was the pinatas that engaged lots of children. Fourth, and most importantly, the event provided a wonderful opportunity for people to meet, to talk, to share stories and to deepen relationships. Relationship are critical for movement work, since we can not only build trust, we can collectively take action at a deeper level, as Southerners on New Ground (SONG) reminds us with their relational organizing model.

However, on top of all the beautiful aspects of the community building and cultural event that Cosecha fostered last night, there was an additional act of inspiration. The event was held at SECOM on Friday night, an early on in the event, the director of SECOM, Pablo DeNooyer Garcia, made the announcement that SECOM would also be a Sanctuary space for undocumented immigrants.

In the span of 5 days, there have now been two community-based organizations that have publicly announced they would be safe spaces for the communities affected by the threat of mass deportation. On Monday, LincUp declared their commitment to being a Sanctuary space, and last night SECOM.

As Cosecha organizer Gema Lowe has said recently, “If the City of Grand Rapids or Kent County won’t declare themselves a sanctuary space, then the community will do it. We take care of ourselves.”

On Friday morning, MLive reported that the Michigan State House passed legislation that, “would withhold a majority of state funding from counties and cities that limit cooperation with federal immigration authorities.”

MLive also noted that “the bill was passed with support from all Republicans and five Democrats – state Reps. Peter Herzberg, D-Westland, Tullio Liberati, D-Allen Park, Denise Mentzer, D-Mount Clemens, Mai Xiong, D-Warren, and Angela Witwer, D-Delta Township.” The bill now goes to the Michigan Senate to see if they will also adopt an anti-sanctuary position.

What we have been hearing from local government, with the City of Grand Rapids and from the Kent County Commission, on why they won’t adopt a sanctuary policy comes down to one of two things. First, some have said that immigration is a federal policy, which they have no control over, so they won’t take a position. The second reason that we have heard repeatedly is that if the City or the County adopted a sanctuary policy it would put a target on their back, from both the federal government and now potentially the State of Michigan. 

One response that immigrant organizers have given to these justifications from local government officials is that immigrant communities always have a target on their backs. In the midst of these kind of repressive policies, when the federal, and possibly the state government, wants to punish people, now is the time to stand with those most impacted by the repression. Indeed, this is the very essence of solidarity, when those who carry more privilege are willing to defy systems of power and oppression and stand with those most affected. This is what SECOM did last night!