Minutes

Our Call to End and Reform Unjust Immigration Enforcement Practices and Laws

APPROVED by Swarthmore Monthly Meeting 2/8/26

As people of faith who are convinced that the Divine dwells within every human being, we feel called to bear witness to the profound harms of current immigration enforcement practices in the United States. These actions, and the current government that supports them, are in opposition with a spiritual truth we hold sacred: that every person is inherently endowed with dignity and worth.

Through unjust and harmful immigration enforcement practices and laws, often violently carried out by masked federal agents, our government is damaging communities, separating children from their parents, and tearing apart the bonds of family. This leaves wounds that can endure for generations. Current immigration enforcement often singles out communities for traumatic action based on race, creed, and national origin, and too often strips away basic rights and protections without due process  Many are thereby forced into conditions of persecution, oppression, poverty, and even death—within and beyond their home countries—sometimes through detention practices and foreign prisons where torture has been reported. Now non-violent protesters, too, are being subjected to violence and even murder. Such enforcement practices sow fear and spread trauma through our communities, violating human dignity, fundamental rights, and often the laws of our country. We are also deeply concerned that these actions conflict with our nation’s commitments under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, the Convention Against Torture, and the Refugee Convention and its Protocol—commitments that speak to our shared responsibility to protect human dignity and uphold the right to seek asylum. Federal agents must obey our laws regarding who can be stopped or detained, and how and why this can be done, as well as people’s rights before and when detained. Federal agents cannot be allowed to ignore or alter these laws as they choose. In addition, we are concerned that federal facilities are unsafe and inhumane, and they regularly refuse to admit members of our government responsible for their oversight.

Guided by faith and conscience, we affirm that human laws should serve the well-being and dignity of persons and communities. When laws and their enforcement produce widespread suffering, division, and despair, we believe people of faith have a responsibility to examine those laws and practices honestly, to speak the truth as we are given to see it, and to labor for reform—through prayer, public witness, and nonviolent action.

We do not claim moral perfection, but we do feel called to participate faithfully in the continuing work to make our nation more just, with humility, courage, and a commitment to nonviolence. Compelled by our commitment to hospitality, and by enduring spiritual teachings to welcome the stranger and to love our neighbors as ourselves, we urge faith communities and people of conscience to rise courageously alongside immigrants facing persecution and harm. We call for swift legal reform and for an immediate end to unjust and oppressive enforcement practices. Together, let us labor to build a beloved community where the human and civil rights of immigrants are honored, protected, and upheld. In this endeavor, we affirm the Divine presence within each person and the spiritual truth upon which our faith—and our shared humanity—depend. We are eager to join with other communities and people of faith and conscience who feel led to work together for a peaceful and just society.

With hope,

Swarthmore Friends Meeting