Detroit archbishop joins Catholic leaders in
condemning family separation at the border
"Even people who have broken the law deserve to be
treated with dignity," said Archbishop Allen Vigneron.
COURTESY
OF THE CATHOLIC ARCHDIOCESE OF DETROIT
The Trump administration’s policy of
separating families at the border has generated criticism and condemnation.
The so-called "zero tolerance"
policy resulted in the separation of 1,995 children from their families during
the six-week period between April 16 and May 31. That number is now estimated
to be well over 2,000 children.
This weekend, current first lady Melania Trump as well
as all living former first ladies — both Republican and Democrat — spoke out
against the policy.
Christian leaders across denominations have
also publicly condemned the measure.
Last week, the United States Conference of
Catholic Bishops released a statement.
“While protecting our borders is important, we can and
must do better as a government, and as a society, to find other ways to ensure
that safety,” the statement read. “Separating babies from their mothers is not
the answer and is immoral.”
Reverend Allen Vigneron is the archbishop of Detroit, the spiritual
leader of more than 1.5 million Catholics in Southeast Michigan. He spoke
with Stateside about his views on the policy of
separating families and the welfare of migrant children.
The archbishop echoed statements
from other Catholic leaders that separating children from families is highly
immoral because of the damage it causes to young children.
“Imagine the fear that they have being taken
from their parents,” he said. "This is a great injury to them here at a
vulnerable time in their life.”
While many religious leaders have criticized
the policy, those within the Trump administration have pointed to verses in the
Bible to defend strict border control, most notably the U.S. Attorney General
Jeff Sessions. In response, some have pointed out this same scripture was
also used to defend slavery.
The archbishop said he and all Catholic
bishops recognize that the government has the authority to secure national
borders.
“I’m not a political leader. This isn’t the
job God gave me to do,” he said. “I’m a pastoral leader, and my job is to
articulate solid moral wisdom in these matters. I know that we need to accomplish
both the security of our borders, maintaining the rule of law, and at the same
time treat people with respect and protect families.”
The archbishop said political leaders should
be putting families first in public policy, and keeping migrant children with
their parents would be "faithful to our tradition of treating people with
dignity."
"Even people who have broken the law
deserve to be treated with dignity," he added.
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