Church Leader Are Willing To Risk Their Necks For Illegal Immigrants Protection

This article was originally published on Word In Black.The 6% of undocumented immigrants who are Black are among those whom churches have pledged to keep safe. When the Right Rev. Mariann Edgar Budde stepped up to the pulpit at the traditional presidential inaugural prayer service on Jan. 21, she stood on business. As the first woman to serve as the spiritual leader of the Episcopal Diocese of Washington, she confronted President Donald Trump, pleading for mercy on behalf of people she said are terrified by his administration’s hardline immigration plans.“Millions have put their trust in you,” Budde told Trump at the Washington National Cathedral. “In the name of our God, I ask you to have mercy upon the people in our country who are scared now.”Budde’s plea reflects a larger anxiety rippling through immigrant communities and faith leaders nationwide after Trump signed a slew of executive orders on immigration, declared a national emergency on the southern U.S. border and announced plans to deploy troops there. He has also threatened to end birthright citizenship and expanded the scope of immigration enforcement to include raids at houses of worship — long viewed as sanctuaries, off-limits to immigration offices.All of this has left...