The murder of 22-year-old nursing student Laken Riley on the campus of the University of Georgia Feb. 22 has drawn national media interest and political activity. Right-wing movers and shakers have especially been galvanized by this one murder. I think I…
State judge blocks Paxton’s quest to ‘run roughshod’ over El Paso migrant ministry
A state district judge has blocked Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton’s attempt to obtain records from a faith-based migrant services shelter in El Paso. Paxton filed suit against Annunciation House, a historic Catholic nonprofit, when the shelter failed to provide…
White evangelicals stand out again in survey of immigration attitudes but other surveys show more openness to a solution
White evangelicals outpace other Christian groups in assuming the worst about immigrants and immigration, Pew Research Center found in a new study. The March 4 report also found Christians overall have more negative attitudes about immigration than those who claim…
Evangelicals more open to immigration than their politicians believe
U.S. evangelicals strongly favor immigration policies that both strengthen border security and treat migrants and their families with fairness and dignity, Lifeway Research reported. Sponsored by the Evangelical Immigration Table, the survey also uncovered significant support among evangelicals to provide…
Biden administration has been unable to clean up Trump administration’s mess of family separation, but Trump says he might do it again
Almost half the immigrant children separated from their parents by the Trump administration still haven’t been reunited, according to an investigative report in New York magazine. The Feb. 27 report says more than 5,000 children were taken from their parents…
Ed Young calls immigrants ‘undesirables,’ ‘garbage’ and ‘raff’
A former president of the Southern Baptist Convention and a leader in the denomination’s “conservative resurgence” told his Houston megachurch Feb. 25 migrants crossing the U.S.-Mexico border are “undesirables, “garbage” and “raff.” Roaming back and forth on a stage adorned…
Texas attorney general sets off religious liberty alarms by attacking a Catholic charity in El Paso
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton’s effort to shutter a Catholic nonprofit helping migrants in El Paso is intended to intimidate other church-based groups engaged in compassionate ministries throughout the state, immigration advocates say. This week, Paxton filed suit against Annunciation…
Ecumenical group gathers at border wall to share Communion and demonstrate unity
An ecumenical network of Caribbean, Latin American and U.S. religious groups expanded its commitment to serving migrants throughout the region during a four-day gathering in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico. Ruben Ortiz, Latino field ministries coordinator for the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship, served…
Anti-immigrant frenzy creates dangerous situation at U.S. border, advocates warn
Anti-immigrant bigotry is reaching a frenzied pitch as Texas continues to defy a U.S. Supreme Court ruling that grants U.S. border agents permission to remove razor wire Gov. Greg Abbott has erected along portions of the Rio Grande. Abbott has…