(RNS) — On Thursday (Jan. 16), Union Theological Seminary will host a “Know Your Rights, Find Your Voice” interfaith event that will convene faith leaders, immigration advocates and legal experts. Organized in collaboration with Columbia University’s Office of Religious Life and New York’s Episcopal Diocese, the event aims to provide spiritual and legal resources for faith communities as they prepare for the incoming Trump administration’s promised immigration crackdown.
“There’s no greater issue at this moment in time that calls out for response from religious communities,” said the Rev. Serene Jones, Union Theological Seminary’s president, adding that it’s crucial for different faith communities to organize and rally together.
President-elect Donald Trump announced he would rescind a policy preventing ICE agents from arresting undocumented immigrants in sensitive places, undermining the sanctuary movement, a growing list of houses of worship that offer shelter to immigrants facing deportation. Trump also announced he will orchestrate the “largest deportation operation in American history.”
Since the immigration crisis peaked in 2022, more than 200,000 asylum-seekers have settled in New York, and the city’s religious organizations have been a source of critical support for them. Days before the Trump administration takes office, many fear his proposed policies will hinder that work, especially as New York City Mayor Eric Adams said he would work closely with Trump’s incoming “border czar,” Tom Homan, on immigration.
The Rev. Frederick Davie. (Photo courtesy of UTS)
In addition to Union Theological Seminary, Thursday’s event is co-sponsored by New York’s Interfaith Center, the Jewish Theological Seminary, and Riverside Church and will feature Imam Musa Kabba of the Bronx’s Masjid-ur-Rahmah mosque and New York’s Episcopal bishop, the Rt. Rev. Matthew Heyd. The day’s first panels will offer Abrahamic perspectives on the work done by faith organizations and will also be an occasion to reflect on these groups’ past achievements.
“We would not be faithful to our various faith traditions if we were not doing this. It would actually be an act of unfaithfulness to see this hugely vulnerable population beset by the state and authorities and to turn away from it,” said the Rev. Frederick Davie, vice president for public theology and civic engagement at Union Theological Seminary.
Adama Bah, who will participate in this discussion, said it was crucial to protect faith-based organizations’ unique status as shelters for migrants. Houses of worship inspire trust and are often the first stop for migrants arriving in the city, she explained. Bah runs Afrikana, an organization that provides legal help, shelter and benefit assistance to Black, Arab and Muslim migrants in Harlem and the Bronx.
Many Black and African migrants come to her organization knowing they will be able to connect with members of their community and speak their languages.
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“When you arrive, you go to what you recognize and who you recognize. These folks recognize a mosque, they recognize a church, they recognize a synagogue. So they are comfortable going to those places and saying, ‘I need help,’” she said.
Bah said she’s worried the new administration won’t make efforts to ensure documents addressing migrants are available in all languages. Afrikana serves individuals who mostly speak Wolof, French and Creole, and finding documents in adequate languages is crucial to the asylum and visa application process. “This administration doesn’t want people to understand their rights, and that’s what I’m more afraid of,” she said.
As a Black Muslim woman running an organization that serves many Muslim migrants, Bah also fears Islamophobia and that organizations like hers will be stigmatized. The support of other faith leaders, especially from different traditions, will help face this, she said.
“We really are in this together. So if you are Muslim, if you are Jewish, if you are Catholic, you know that if they go after one thing, they’re going to go after all of them,” she said.
The event will also focus on educating faith communities on the legal framework they’re working in. The day’s second panel will evoke the rules and laws affecting their work to ensure faith groups know what they can and can’t do. Since Trump announced his intent to rescind sanctuary, speakers will ensure organizations that might overstep the law know what they are facing.
“If faith organizations bump against the law and decide they want to step over it, because their tradition, in some ways, demands it, we want them to be clear about what that means as well,” said Davie.
This panel will feature professor Alina Das, who co-directs NYU School of Law’s Immigrant Rights Clinic. Das is the author of “No Justice in the Shadows: How America Criminalizes Immigrants” (2020), a book in which she highlights how Trump’s immigration strategies revolve around criminalizing immigrants.
The Rev. Serene Jones. (Photo courtesy of UTS)
“As an immigrant rights lawyer, I’ve seen the difference that faith leaders and congregations have made when they connect immigrants with legal and social services, support them in court proceedings, and open hearts and minds to the importance of protecting immigrants’ rights,” wrote Das in an email to RNS.
The event will also offer a networking session dedicated to connecting faith organizations to other groups working in their neighborhoods.
Jones said that despite the difficult times ahead, faith groups remain committed to providing shelter and assistance to migrants.
“It’s near and dear to our hearts and our hands and feet, and how we move into the world, that we don’t shy away from this moment,” she said.
This article was updated to correct in paragraph 5 that Union Theological Seminary is also a sponsor of the event.’
