A controversial stand
Church says it's willing to offer sanctuary to woman threatened by deportation
By Darleen Principe darleen@theacorn.com

IRIS SMOOT/Acorn Newspapers STATEMENT- The Rev. June Goudey, pastor of the United Church of Christ of Simi Valley. Her congregation voted last week to join the New Sanctuary Movement, a faith-based organization which offers to house undocumented immigrants facing deportation.

The United Church of Christ in Simi Valley took a political stand last week when members voted to become the first church in Ventura County to act as a sanctuary congregation for illegal immigrants.

Despite its membership in the larger United Church of Christ, the local congregation acted autonomously to join the national New Sanctuary Movement, which aims to help families who are being pulled apart due to what the group considers to be unjust immigration laws.

"All we needed was a simple majority and the vote was overwhelming," said the Rev. June C. Goudey, pastor of the church.

Goudey, a board member of the Ventura County Clergy and Laity United for Economic Justice (CLUE), said she learned at a board meeting in January about a national movement calling for faith-based support. In May, when a 29-year-old Oxnard woman, known to movement leaders by her first name, Liliana, faced deportation and asked for sanctuary, Goudey said the church was prompted to take action.

But Liliana's acceptance into the program is not a sure thing. UCC Simi Valley has said it will only house people whom CLUE has thoroughly screened and whose circumstances are "compelling," according to certain criteria. Any person taking sanctuary must 1) be at risk of deportation, 2) be the parent of children who are U.S. citizens, 3) have a good work history and 4) have good moral standing.

In screening applicants for sanctuary, CLUE will work with the Center of Human Rights and Constitutional Law, a Los Angeles law firm that specializes in immigration cases, said Alice Linsmeier, coordinator of the Ventura County office of CLUE.

Goudey said the church's action attempts to "put a human face on broken laws" and means to keep families from being separated while government officials determine the proper policy. The church will not provide sanctuary to any immigrant with a criminal background other than the lack of legal documentation, she said.

Although Liliana's crime was that she entered the U.S. with a fake birth certificate, the punishment wasn't fitting, Goudey said. Deportation would mean that Liliana would be taken away from her husband and three children, all of whom are U.S. citizens.

"If the immigration authorities are trying to deal with smugglers and drug dealers and those with criminal intention, that's wonderful," Goudey said. "If they want to deport criminals, then by all means."

However, some opponents of the New Sanctuary Movement said that providing shelter to illegal immigrants, regardless of their lack of a criminal history, is a crime in itself.

"They are aiding and abetting criminals and they should be severely prosecuted and taxed," said Barbara Coe, founder and chairperson of the California Coalition of Immigration Reform, based in Huntington Beach.

"It makes no difference (that they are being screened)," Coe said. "They are criminals in violation of federal immigration laws. End of discussion."

Also, she said, churches should not receive tax breaks or government grants if they are assisting illegal immigrants.

Goudey said she's unconcerned with tax issues. As part of the New Sanctuary Movement, "allied congregations" will provide the sanctuary church with supplies necessary to support the individual being housed.

The church and CLUE have already accepted donations from church patrons and some individuals outside the ministry.

Those approved for assistance will initially have a threemonth limit on their stay.

However, the stay can be extended depending on the circumstances. Goudey said the movement is housing at least one person in Chicago who's lived in sanctuary for more than a year.

Currently, Liliana is the primary candidate for sanctuary in Ventura County. While CLUE reviews her case, she's staying at a church office building in Long Beach with her 4monthold baby.

If the organization accepts her case for the movement, she'll move to a four-bedroom house on the Simi church's property.

Still, church members won't hide Liliana or any other immigrant who's taken residence there. They say they hope that police will consider the concept of sanctuary seriously and refrain from making an arrest.

"The person in sanctuary agrees to be public and speak about their situation publicly," Linsmeier said.

That agreement is New Sanctuary Movement's major difference from the original one in the 1980s when congregations pledged not to reveal the identities of Central American refugees taking sanctuary, according to the movement's website.

This is not the first time the United Church of Christ has taken a side on a controversial issue. In January 1998, the Simi congregation, which considers itself to be "progressive and radically inclusive," declared itself open and affirming to gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender individuals.

Like Dot Blankley, many members of the congregation feel that the actions of the church are examples of how it lives up to its core values.

"I'm proud to be a lifelong member of a church which takes our faith seriously and joins with others in responding with compassion to those in need of our help," Blankley said. "We care about people and that's one of our main values."

In a Nutshell

• The New Sanctuary Movement is a network of allied congregations which aims to address the treatment of immigrants threatened with deportation. • The movement, launched in May, calls on churches across the nation to provide shelter and protection to eligible applicants. •Additional information is available on the Internet at the website www.newsanctuarymovement.org.