Commentary: I’ve always been proud of the way our community treats those who are in need of help.
The most obvious example of that is the Community of Hope complex, where the homeless can get food, shelter, clothing, showers, counseling, computer access, job assistance and treatment for both their physical and mental health.
More recently, when federal authorities began dropping off families of Central America refugees in Las Cruces, El Calvario Methodist Church launched a massive volunteer effort to welcome those families and help them get to their sponsors around the country.
Those arriving at El Calvario and other local churches involved in the effort are greeted with a hot meal, a warm embrace and, most importantly, are given a sense of safety and security after a long and perilous journey. Their stay is temporary, usually a couple of days before they leave to connect with their sponsors.
The volunteer effort has been truly impressive. But, with more refugees continuing to arrive, the coordinated effort between federal authorities and the local volunteer network has broken down, and refugees are now being dropped off at local homeless shelters, without advanced notice.
On Thursday of last week, 68 children and adults were taken to the Gospel Rescue Mission, with 25 to 30 more taken to the Community of Hope campus. An additional 83 were dropped off Friday, and another 170 Monday, according to the city, with more arrivals expected. To accommodate the influx, the city has temporarily converted the Meerscheidt Recreation Center into a refugee shelter
At its regular meeting on Monday, the City Council voted unanimously to approve $75,000 in humanitarian assistance for those who have been dropped off in our community. It is not clear exactly how the money will be spent, as city officials are responding on the fly to meet the new and constantly changing demands.
And, it’s not just the government that is responding to the need. When the call went out for donations of clothes, money, toiletries and other necessities, the community turned out in droves. People lined up at the Gospel Rescue Mission to drop off their items, filling the room from floor to ceiling, according to reporting in the Sun-News.
President Donald Trump is right about one thing, border communities like ours do shoulder the burden for our leaders’ inability to bring needed reforms to our nation’s immigration system.
But that’s nothing new. Congress has been divided over its immigration policy for decades. Each new administration has had its own theories as to what should be done, but none has been able to forge a consensus. And so, even though there may be agreement that reform is needed, the antiquated laws remain in force.
And yes, that does impact us more than other areas of the nation.
But what the president constantly gets wrong is his view that people pose a threat simply because they were born in another country. His proposal to dump refugees into sanctuary cities is just the latest example of that misguided thinking.
The surge of refugees from Central America has created several long-term issues that need to be addressed regarding our asylum laws and the conditions in Honduras, Guatemala and El Salvador that have led to this migration. Sadly, those questions will all be set aside once the crisis ends.
That leaves us with the short term, where desperate people are in need of help, and our small community is doing what it can to help them.
It makes me proud.