Living With Immigrants, and Loving It!
LIVING WITH IMMIGRANTS, AND LOVING IT!
Along with many of you, I've been thinking a lot about the immigrants in our community and trying to better understand how things have changed for them. It may seem that immigration is not really an issue in Montana, but it is indeed – and I’d like to take you on a little journey of what I have learned.
To begin with, there are probably at least 6 times more immigrants in Montana than there are Episcopalians. In 2023, the Migration Policy Institute reports 24,623 “foreign born” residents of Montana (some of these may have become naturalized citizens or hold green cards). And we know that many of these immigrants attend churches, including Episcopal churches.
In addition to these residents, we know that we have agricultural workers visiting the state to help our farmers and likely traveling through the state to work elsewhere. I’ve seen them and interacted with them in the Flathead, where my wife and I helped with translating in previous years.
And we know that there are at least three organizations in the State working specifically on refugee resettlement: the IRC (International Rescue Committee) in Missoula, Lutheran Refugee Services in Billings and Soft Landing in Missoula. The first two are among the ten previously authorized refugee resettlement agencies financed in part by the Federal Government and Soft Landing is an independent community organization. An estimated 1,000 refugees have been resettled to Montana, most in the Missoula area.
In addition to these refugees, the National TPS Alliance has identified at least 145 immigrants in Montana with Temporary Protected Status (most believed to be Venezuelans in the Flathead area).
Despite immigration not being a major issue in Montana, some entities in our state have reached “287(g) agreements” with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). 287(g) is a program for allowing state and local agencies to act as immigration enforcement agents. Recently, the Montana Department of Justice signed a 287(g) agreement, which suggests that our Highway Patrol will likely become involved.
In addition, Lewis and Clark and Missoula Counties have apparently joined a Secure Community Program with ICE, allowing for automatic screening of individuals booked into county jails to identify criminal aliens… including the use of “facial recognition” (which has been shown to be inaccurate). And Cascade County has a contract with ICE to provide detention services at their county jail and earn income as a result.
Beyond these facts, any pretense of treating immigrants with dignity may seem to have gone out the window over the past eight months. But I encourage us all to be mindful that this is a Montana issue – and it should be viewed through the lens of our Baptismal vows, which call for humane treatment, keeping families together and human dignity for all.