Walking in Solidarity: Sisters Stand with Immigrant Families in South Texas
Adapted by Sr. Leticia Rodriguez, CCVI-San Antonio, from original post by Monica Hatcher, Director of Social Concerns & Communications; CCVI-Houston.
Our CCVI Sisters, joined sisters of the LCWR-Region XII in prayerful presence and solidarity for immigrants facing hardship and uncertainty in two public vigils held during Lent at the Family Detention Center, near Dilley, TX, and a march in San Antonio, Texas.
On February 28th various sisters joined an interdenominational pilgrimage walk to the ICE Court in Downtown San Antonio. Some sisters made the full 9-mile walk, others joined for the last part of the journey; 1.5 miles from St. Henrys to the Court in downtown San Antonio. It was a sunny and hot day. The journey was a short an intense experience of the hardships that people in search for a better-quality life go through. Sisters want to respond the call to be a “good neighbor,” (Luke 10:25-37, NIV), and, not to become “indifferent to the suffering around us” (Pope Francis) .
In addition, gathered for the Spring meeting of the Leadership Conference of Women Religious, Region XII, CCVI Sisters Peggy Bonnot, Josetta Eveler, Jean Durel, Francine Keane, Teresa Stanley, Michele O’Brien, and Leti Rodriguez, together with staff members Donna Guerra, and Mia Sandoval traveled by bus on March 16 to the South Texas Family Residential Center near Dilley, TX. The site is the largest ICE family detention center in the country. The facility, located beside a state prison, holds mostly women and children in civil immigration detention as they await deportation.
Because of unusually cold weather, participants began a vigil at St. Joseph’s Catholic Church. We placed posters of 35 immigrants who have died in ICE custody at the altar and offered songs, readings, and reflections. We then continued our “pilgrimage” to the detention center, where security officers permitted us to pray at the fence line. The group prayed, sang, and tied purple ribbons to the gate. These ribbons, said Sr. Michele O’Brien, C.C.V.I. San Antonio, “are a visible sign of the prayers and concerns we carry for every child, parent, and individual locked inside this facility.
