Should We Hide Immigrants in Our Attics?
A serious question about what time it is.
Sarah and I did one of our rare meta-Secret shows about the broad disagreements people in the community had with us this week. I think it’s reasonably insightful? But also: It’s much more about us than usual. If that annoys you, maybe skip this one.
The show is here.
1. Inglorious Bastards
I got an email from a buddy this morning that brought me up short. I want to share it with you:
Are you absolutely sure that as Christians this isn’t the time to hide Anne Frank? Shouldn’t I be willing to help migrants avoid deportation/detention at whatever legal perils await me? If not now then when . . . when it gets twice as bad or three times as bad or ten times as bad?
Sorry if this sounds weird, but everyone likes to think that given the opportunity they would be Mississippi freedom riders or on the bridge at Selma. Well what if it’s that time for me?
My knee-jerk reaction was, No. We’re not anywhere near Anne Frank territory.
But then I started thinking through the logistics of Trump’s deportations. And I have some questions.
Let’s say you’re an immigrant with questionable legal status. You’re married and your spouse is the same. You have lived in America for many years, paying taxes and whatnot, and own a house. You have two kids and they are American citizens—for now.1
You and your spouse show up for a routine court date and are snatched by a group of men in masks who claim (without showing identification) that they are agents of the state. You are put in jail. And let’s assume that you are deported. Perhaps to El Salvador.
What happens to your children in the hours after you are arrested? Who picks them up from school? Who feeds them? Where do they sleep?
What happens to your assets?2
If you own a home, what happens to it? Is it sold? By whom? Through what process? Where to the proceeds of the sale go?
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