“But Jesus said, ‘Let the little children come to me and do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of heaven.’” Matthew 19:14.
As little children come across our southern border seeking safety from the violence and depravations of their home countries, I am shocked and deeply dismayed at the response of some in the media. American talk show host Laura Ingraham said we should deport them by the thousands. Fox News Channel TV show host Judge Jeanine Pirro said our safety is at risk, and we are in danger. Steve Doocy, a Fox news personality, said they could be members of gangs. These same pundits are often the first ones to claim America is a Christian country.
And I never thought I would see the day when a U.S. congressman would stand up on the floor of the House of Representatives and suggest that we treat small children as an “invading force” and authorize military force against them, as Texas Rep. Louie Gohmert did. These are children – alone, hungry and afraid – that they are talking about. What kind of people turn their backs on a lost child?
How did these children get here, and why are they here? I don’t know the answer, but common sense tells me they most likely did not walk the thousand miles from El Salvador and Guatemala through Mexico in a vast exodus to America. They are probably the orphans and street children who have been displaced here by their home countries to avoid the responsibility of caring for them. We should look at this as a blessing. Yes, a blessing. The opportunity to save 50,000 children from a life of poverty, starvation and untold deprivation has been placed, literally, at our door.
What should we do? The first thing we should do is take them in, feed them and clothe them. We should give them medical care, comfort them and teach them. The last thing we should do is shout at them, frighten them and turn them away. We should act like compassionate Americans, not bullies. I am utterly shocked at the inhuman displays on television of people shouting and screaming epithets at small children. We should hold in contempt those in the media and government who seek to demagogue a humanitarian crisis for their own political purposes.
The next thing we should do is make our best efforts to identify the children, determine whether they have parents or families that can care for them, and, if they do, return them to their families. Given the circumstances, I doubt there are many of them who have families that can care for them. For those who have no families to care of them, we should build a community for them, educate them, care for them and make them available for adoption. What we should never do is turn our backs to helpless children or send them back to developing countries to face lives of poverty and deprivation.
What would Jesus do?
[Carlton “Duke” Fagan is an attorney from Jacksonville. A version of this guest column ran on page 7 on 7/22/2014 under the headline "Americans should show more compassion to immigrant children"]
