If you ain’t Dutch, you ain’t much!

Some of my Hollander friends and I used to jokingly say that to friends who were not of Dutch descent. 

On a more serious note, though, I’m saddened by the way we treat people who are not the same as we are. Daily we hear about attacks on Jews, Palestinians, Muslims, Blacks, gays, lesbians, transgender persons…and let’s not forget prisoners. 

“Such then is the human condition, that to wish greatness for one's country is to wish harm to one's neighbors.”

― Voltaire 

Today the hot topic is immigrants and migrants. In our neck of the woods, this has been fueled by a Kent County murder case involving a previously deported immigrant. 

Donald Trump was in Grand Rapids yesterday to fuel the fire. We already know how he feels about these people. He charges that many are criminals from prisons, and recently he accused migrants — many of them women and children escaping poverty and violence — of “ poisoning the blood ” of America with drugs and disease. He even claimed some are “not people!” 

Kent County Prosecutor Chris Becker joins in, pointing out that this recent case marks the second homicide in Michigan in 10 months committed by an immigrant. (Gasp!) That’s 0.33% of the number of murders in Michigan per year! 

Lauren Gibbons, writer for Bridge Michigan, says: “…most research indicates they are actually less likely to commit crimes, regardless of their legal status,” according to recent studies. These studies also found that people who are in the country illegally have lower conviction rates for homicide than native-born residents. 

OK, let’s take a bigger look at the Michigan picture. 

-Our state has 49,135 migrant and seasonal farmworkers, as well as 94,167 farmworkers and their household members. We’d be hurting without them! 

-Refugees and immigrants hold a 90% job retention rate in Michigan, and immigrants hold an estimated $18 billion in spending power! 

I find it interesting that, when Jesus used the Good Samaritan parable to underscore the charge that we must love our neighbor, he concludes that it was the Samaritan, a foreigner, who was actually the neighbor! 

I have been working with and for prisoners for more than two decades. HFP has thousands of clients in the state’s corrections facilities. I can count, on one hand, the number of immigrants behind bars that I have dealt with! 

I’ve used this quote of a special needs child before: God don’t make no junk! 

These men, women and children didn’t leave everything behind to start problems here. They want a fresh start. “Humanity” is in the name of our organization. We want incarcerated people to know they matter. Seems to me that everyone created in the image of God deserves the same message. 

Prisoner advocates often quote a passage from Hebrews 13 that encourages us to “…remember those in prison as if you were together with them.” 

But, just before you get to that nugget, the writer says this: “Do not forget to show hospitality to strangers…” 

Such behavior begins with me.