Stories from the DREAM Sabbath


September 29, 2011

In Elkin, N.C., Galloway Memorial Episcopal Church parishioners and guests gather on the church steps following their September 25 DREAM Sabbath and luncheon. Photo: Courtesy Galloway Memorial Episcopal Church

In Elkin, N.C., Galloway Memorial Episcopal Church parishioners and guests gather on the church steps following their September 25 DREAM Sabbath and luncheon. Photo: Courtesy Galloway Memorial Episcopal Church

When the Rev. Mary Ellen Finegan of Central United Methodist Church in Fairmont, W.Va., stood up to preach this past Sunday, she knew that her message would be controversial with some members.

She was about to speak out in support of the DREAM Act, a bipartisan bill that would provide a path to citizenship for some undocumented youth.  (Read her sermon here.)

Central’s Sept. 25 service is counted among the more than 350 “DREAM Sabbath” observances – many of them listed atwww.dreamsabbath.org – taking place in 45 U.S. states Sept. 16 through Oct. 9.  A diverse array of faith communities and DREAM-eligible youth are uniting in this national effort to urge Congress to pass the DREAM Act.

As Pastor Finegan shook hands with congregants after service, she was pleased to receive affirmations of support from people who previously had opposed the DREAM Act.  “Thanks for explaining the difference between the DREAM Act and amnesty,” one said.

Another told Pastor Finegan: “Well, if the DREAM Act is really the way you presented it, with all these facts, I am for it!  Who wouldn’t want children who grew up with our children to have the same rights that citizenship can afford?”

The DREAM Act would allow some undocumented immigrant students the opportunity to earn legal status if they came to the United States as children, are long-term U.S. residents, have good moral character and complete two years of college or military service.  Last year, the bill came a mere five votes short of passage in the U.S. Senate.

Church World Service through its Immigration and Refugee Program is a sponsor of DREAM Sabbath as part of its broader advocacy for the DREAM Act and fair, humane reform of the U.S. immigration system.

Rev. John L. McCullough, Executive Director and CEO of Church World Service, said, “Why do I support the DREAM Act?  Because I care about young people and I care about their future.  My wife and I are parents of three daughters, two of them college graduates and one still in college.  There’s nothing we want more for them than for them to thrive.

“Our daughters are the same age as many of the young people who would benefit from the DREAM Act – an educated generation of promising immigrant students who have demonstrated a commitment to hard work.  They consider the United States their home and want to contribute their talents to this country.  They are a vital and valuable asset to this nation.”

Many DREAM Sabbath events feature as speakers undocumented young people who would benefit from the DREAM Act.  DREAMer Moises Serrano was one of four undocumented youths who shared their stories Sept. 25 at Galloway Memorial Episcopal Church in Elkin, N.C.

Serrano was less than two years old when his parents brought him north to escape poverty and violence in Mexico.  He grew up in Yadkin County, N.C., and graduated high school with a high grade point average.  The DREAMers “are not criminals,” Serrano said.  “All we want to do is get an education and give back.  … I want to own a house.  I want to settle down.”

Galloway’s Vicar, the Rev. Gaye Brown, reflecting on the congregation’s DREAM Sabbath, said, “The congregation was so supportive of these young people and so beautifully welcoming.”
(Read more about Galloway’s DREAM Sabbath here.)

DREAMer Lupe was among speakers Sunday, Sept. 25, at Meridian Street United Methodist Church in Indianapolis, Ind.  Brought to the United States as a small child, she spoke English fluently by the third grade and excelled in her studies through eighth grade.  Then she found out that she was undocumented.

“It was heartbreaking,” Lupe said.  “I started freshman year.  My grades were really bad.  I didn’t think there was a point of trying.”  She failed three classes.  But during her sophomore year she got involved with the Latino Youth Collective, and when she learned about the DREAM Act, she began to have hope again.

“My goal is to become a social worker,” she said.  “I love helping people.  I don’t know how long it is going to take, but eventually I will get there.  The DREAM Act would really help.”

She concluded, “Thank you for listening to me and for having a whole mass on this issue because it’s really important.  It means a lot that you guys are actually taking your time to hear people’s stories.”

Meridian Street’s DREAM Sabbath service also featured a selection of Bible passages, with the reader noting, “Welcoming the stranger is the most repeated commandment in the Old Testament with the exception of the command to worship God.”

Guest preacher Bill Mefford, Director, Civil and Human Rights, United Methodist Church General Board of Church and Society, Washington, D.C., warned against reducing people to such labels as “illegal.”  Instead, we need to listen to people’s whole story – then engage in the story, he said.

Poverty and oppression are not the fault of the poor and oppressed, Mefford continued, they are the result of the unjust distribution of resources and abuse of power.  He called for “political engagement on behalf of those who are vulnerable” and transformation of unjust systems like the immigration system.

In addition to hundreds of events, local faith leaders have hosted DREAM Sabbath press calls over the last week in several states, including Ohio, Pennsylvania, Florida and North Carolina.
(Find links to recordings here.)

DREAM Sabbath is being organized by the Interfaith Immigration Coalition, in partnership with the United We Dream Network – the grassroots movement of undocumented immigrant youth, and longtime DREAM Act champion and sponsor, U.S. Senator Richard Durbin (D-IL).

What you can do:

  • There is still time to organize your own DREAM Sabbath observance.  Full information including a “Toolkit” are available at www.dreamsabbath.org.  Be sure to add your event to the DREAM Sabbath map!
  • Tell your members of Congress that you support the DREAM Act and urge them to work for a common sense, moral resolution to our nation’s broken immigration system.
  • Visit www.churchworldservice.org/refugees and www.supportimmigrationreform.org regularly – and follow the links to our YouTube, Twitter and Facebook pages.
  • While you are at www.churchworldservice.org/refugees, register to “Stay Informed.”  Then sign up for CWS advocacy alerts focused on issues related to immigrants and refugees, and for other eNewsletters of interest.
  • Support your local refugee resettlement agency or denominational refugee and immigration program.  Click “Donate to Assist Refugees” atwww.churchworldservice.org/refugees to help CWS resettle refugees and meet the needs of people in protracted refugee situations around the world.