By Rondell Treviño
It’s only natural that most, if not all of us are longing for the day when COVID-19 suppresses and we get back to some type of normalcy—where we don’t have to wear face masks or stay six feet away from one another.
I believe our national leaders, including President Trump and his administration, feel the same way to some degree. Through all the political complexity, Trump’s administration has attempted to weather COVID-19 with a plan to get people back to work, and helping to launch a stimulus and two Paycheck Protection Programs.
I believe we should give credit where credit is due. The stimulus check I received has allowed me to pay my bills and take care of my wife and two daughters.
Ongoing Attacks Against Immigrants
However, it’s no secret that, since 2015, President Trump and his administration have scapegoated immigrants, migrants, DACA recipients, and asylum-seekers in order to deport them and drastically limit legal immigration to the United States.
When the coronavirus pandemic started taking a toll on the country, the topic of immigration took a backseat. But then, on April 20, President Trump tweeted that he planned a temporary ban on all legal immigration to protect American jobs in the midst of COVID-19. The following day, he announced an executive order blocking most people outside the U.S. from receiving green cards for sixty days. The order builds upon similar recent actions the President’s administration has taken, including closing the southern and northern borders during the pandemic and halting the refugee admissions programs.
The administration’s words and policies have created a trend of racism and xenophobia toward immigrants in the country. Asian Americans as well as Asian immigrants have been the victims of many racist and xenophobic hate crimes during this pandemic, encouraged by Trump referring to COVID-19 as the “Chinese virus.” This phrase alone has created a false narrative that Asian Americans and Asian Immigrants are people to hate and injure, not people to love and be viewed as image bearers of God.
Immigrants on the Front Lines
The Trump administration is halting immigration for 60 days to ensure Americans, not Immigrants, get jobs when the economy rebounds. This assertion is based on an age-old, false belief that many have used to assault, reject, and dehumanize Immigrants.
According to the George W. Bush Presidential Center, 7.6 percent of immigrants are self-employed, compared to 5.6 percent of native-born citizens. They have founded 40 percent of Fortune 500 companies, including Google, Zoom, AT&T, and eBay, to name a few.
In fact, during this pandemic, documented and undocumented immigrants are working on the front lines to fight the virus and enable key services.
1.7 million Immigrant medical and health care workers are caring for COVID-19 patients.
155,000 immigrant biomedical or chemical engineers, biological or chemical technicians, chemists, and medical or life scientists are actively working to develop tests, treatments, and vaccines.
Thousands of immigrants specialize in cleaning occupations that prevent the spread of the disease.
1.5 million immigrants work in delivery, shipping, and trucking, bringing products to households who need them.
Thousands of immigrants cultivate and process a significant portion of America’s food and meat production.
29,000 DACA recipients are healthcare professionals.
75 percent of farmworkers and 40 percent of meat packers are immigrants.
Immigrants have been doing the jobs Americans refuse to do long before the pandemic. Halting immigration capitalizes on fear, tempting Americans to view Immigrants as enemies. It doesn’t protect American jobs.
What the Executive Order Means
The Trump administration has long sought out to cut legal immigration for years, and the COVID-19 pandemic provides an opportunity to do so. Here are the key provisions of the executive order:
Parents living in another country who have been through the interview process cannot enter the U.S.
Brothers and sisters of U.S. citizens are barred from coming to the U.S.
Children of U.S. citizens are barred.
Spouses and children of permanent residents cannot enter.
Those planning to immigrate for work are barred. For example, specialty cooks who were planning to come work in a restaurant can no longer do so.
Immigrants labeled with “extraordinary abilities” such as doctors, teachers, professors, IT professionals, and researchers cannot enter the U.S.
Thousands of immigrants, migrants, and asylum-seekers at the southern border in Matamoros, Mexico, are being turned away while the US-Mexico border is closed. All immigration court hearings for asylum-seekers waiting in Mexico have been postponed. This has brought the asylum system to a virtual standstill.
Each of these categories of immigrants are barred from the United States for the next sixty days, despite going through our broken immigration system’s legal channels. In many ways, they are being punished for obeying the law.
At the same time, this order dramatically affects US citizens, permanent residents, and employers. Sadly, it further increases family separation, which leads to emotional, spiritual, and physical trauma.
The Good Samaritan and Immigration
When Jesus migrated from heaven to this broken world, he lived a life rooted in humility and love for his neighbor. He spent time with sinners, the poor, vulnerable, and outcasts of society. Jesus often attempted to help others see that extending love to their neighbor includes those who think, act, and look differently. He famously explains this in the parable of the Good Samaritan (Luke 10:25-37), where the Samaritan compassionately loves a beaten, dying man on the side of the road—even after a priest and Levite refuse to do so.
Jesus shared this parable to help a religious lawyer understand that loving his neighbor includes those who are different. When I read this passage, I can’t help but see the similarity between the Trump administration and the religious lawyer. The administration is willing to care for Americans—even create a false narrative through an executive order to do so— but unwilling to care for Immigrants, migrants, and asylum-seekers because of how they look, act, or think, or their documentation status.
At the same time, I see similarities between the Trump administration and the beaten man on the side of the road. Like the Samaritan man, the Trump administration is spiritually hurt because the eyes of their hearts are not yet enlightened to see and know the beauty of loving people who are vastly different from them. They only know how to attack and ostracize them. My heart breaks for them.
As fear-based attacks on immigrants, migrants, and asylum-seekers continue, may we never fall into the trap of believing in or approving of this injustice. May we remember our savior, Jesus, who lived a humble life, giving us a blueprint for what it looks like to love our Immigrant, migrant, and asylum-seeking neighbors through friendship, care, hospitality, and justice.
Rondell Treviño is the founder of The immigration Coalition, a faith-based nonprofit providing biblically balanced resources on immigration that show compassion to immigrants and respect for the rule of law. He is also the associate pastor of Hope Community Church. Previously, Rondell worked as a southeast mobilizer for the Evangelical Immigration Table. He received a BA in Biblical studies from Belhaven University and a master of divinity from Capital Seminary and Graduate School. Rondell is happily married to Laura and is the proud father of Sofia and Charlotte.