This article appears on Presbyterian Outlook with the permission of the Presbyterian News Service. The Outlook has a paywall to help fund our independent journalism. If our paywall prevents you from reading the full story, you can read it freely at pcusa.org/news.
More than 120 donors across the Presbytery of San José have given more than $30,000 to fund legal counsel for immigrants facing deportation. Their giving has also unlocked $15,000 in matching funds from the former Peace and Global Witness Offering and related special funds — $7,5000 for each of two regional partner organizations, contingent on the partners together meeting a combined fundraising threshold. The presbytery recognized both organizations during a ceremony last week at Westhope Presbyterian Church in Saratoga, California.
Organized by the presbytery’s Peace and Justice Working Group under the leadership of Executive Presbyter the Rev. Dr. Neal Presa, the Legal Aid Initiative launched in January and ran as a freewill offering from member congregations and partners through Pentecost, May 24.
The partners that will receive the funds are the Guadalupe Center for Justice and Empowerment in Santa Clara County, a community-based organization providing legal services, accompaniment and family support to immigrants, and the Community Action Board of Santa Cruz County, whose Santa Cruz County Immigration Project provides direct legal representation and advocacy.
“As a Christian community of churches, the Presbytery of San José has always been about supporting, accompanying and standing in solidarity for the most vulnerable in our society,” Presa said. “Sadly, the politics and policies of the Trump administration vis-à-vis immigrants and asylum seekers have instilled fear in many communities in our presbytery. We cannot stand by when members of our community are threatened with ICE hearings that may result in their detention and deportations.”
“That is why we partnered with Amigos de Guadalupe in Santa Clara County and the Community Action Board of Santa Cruz County in their efforts to provide legal support for migrants and asylum seekers,” Presa said. “While the money raised and the matching funds we are providing will help in this regard, much remains to be done. The struggle for justice, equity and love for neighbors and strangers continues.”
The Presbytery of San José is a regional governing body of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) representing congregations across Santa Clara, Santa Cruz and Monterey counties. Through its Peace and Justice Working Group, the presbytery supports advocacy and direct service efforts that uphold dignity, justice and mercy.
By Presbytery of San José, Presbyterian News Service
