Advocates, immigrants, police chiefs, and a federal judge have all weighed in against Texas’ dangerous and discriminatory SB 4 anti-immigrant bill, which was signed into law yesterday. Today, 200 Texas faith leaders have sent a letter to Republican Gov. Greg Abbott condemning him for signing the bill, which will lead to racial profiling and discrimination as local law enforcement officers are forced to double as immigration agents.
As the letter from the Texas faith leaders reads:
As faith leaders from many different traditions, we write to condemn the anti-immigrant legislation you signed into law that will target and discriminate against our immigrant neighbors. As people of faith, we look first to our common values rooted in our sacred texts that remind us to love our neighbor and welcome the sojourner among us…
We must recall that we are a state with a proud legacy of immigrants, and we recognize the valuable contributions immigrants and refugees bring to our communities and economy…We are praying that you may find compassion in your discernment process and stop any legislation that hurts immigrants and reduce community safety. We urge you to think about the moral imperative to love our neighbor, welcome the immigrant, and care for the most vulnerable among us.
A number of faith leaders were part of a 10-hour sit-in at the state capitol last week, conducting an act of civil disobedience against SB 4 until they were arrested (and let go) at the end of the day.
View the full letter from the faith leaders here or below:
