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"....José came to America legally.  He followed the steps our government provides people who are being targeted and oppressed.  He, like many others, was waiting to have his case heard in immigration court.  He was a hard worker who paid taxes.  He was a valued member of the Tulsa community and of my church family. 

Our government decided without due process that he is an undesirable.  Now no judge will hear the merits of his asylum claim...."

[In photo: Lynn Minden, leader with Tulsa Lutherans in ACTION]

Lynn Minden: José Came to America Legally, But Got Deported, Tulsa World [scan]

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ACTION Tulsa...hosted an event this week at Congregation B’nai Emunah titled “Who Is My Neighbor?” The event focused on dispelling myths about immigration and featured the story of Mohammad Paiman Faqirzada, an Afghan immigrant who resettled in Tulsa in 2021.

Faqirzada, who now studies cybersecurity at the University of Tulsa and works in technology, spoke about the personal cost of his journey to the United States. His six siblings and parents were unable to flee Afghanistan and remain under Taliban rule.

“When we left our country, my parents and my siblings, unfortunately, they couldn't get to the airport. So, they left behind. We left them behind,” Faqirzada said.

He expressed concern for his two sisters, who are unable to attend school under the Taliban government.

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With over 650 letters in hand from Oklahomans expressing concern about recent immigration enforcement, VOICE, ACTION, and the National Association of Evangelicals met with Oklahoma Governor Kevin Stitt to discuss the impact and future of immigration policy. 

The leaders recognized the governor for his opposition to proposed State Department of Education rules that would have required the determination and collection of the immigration status of Oklahoma students. 

The governor responded with curiosity to stories told by Lutheran, Catholic, and UCC Clergy. They shared how law-abiding members of their congregations are being deported, and the impact of immigration enforcement on foreign-born priests in the Catholic Archdiocese.

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16 faith groups and advocacy organizations turned out for ACTION Tulsa's Mayoral Accountability Session on July 28 inside Trinity Episcopal Church.

"I think this might be the first of its kind in this kind of format," Sheyda Brown from Terence Crutcher Foundation told 2 News....

Maria de Leon from Tulsa Lutherans in Action introduced the “institutional ID” strategy, saying people are nervous since the passage of Oklahoma House Bill 4156 criminalizing undocumented status. A first offense would be punishable by a fine of up to $500 and one year in jail; a second offense carries a felony punishment of up to two years in jail and a $1,000 fine.

Months before the election for several Tulsa Public School Board seats, 500 leaders from 14 institutional members of ACTION Tulsa assembled to establish a public relationship with school board candidates and press them to work with the organization on issues surfaced through several hundred conversations among parents, grandparents and students.  

Parent leaders like Dania Gaona, told stories around lack of safety for young students walking to school, mental health, teacher support and campus safety.  

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In the face of impending evictions in Oklahoma, ACTION and VOICE-OKC leaders organized city councils from OK City, Tulsa, and Norman to urge the governor to expand the eviction moratorium in July.  Governor Stitt responded by allocating $10 Million in state funds for a rental assistance grant program ($5 Million for Tulsa and $5 Million for Oklahoma City).

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The council passed a resolution calling for Gov. Kevin Stitt to temporarily block residential evictions unless a landlord is responding to a tenant’s criminal behavior or dangerous activities.

“We’re really just asking the governor to pay attention to Oklahomans who are really struggling right now” as a result of the COVID-19 shutdown, said City Councilor Lori Decter Wright, one of the sponsors of the resolution.

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Dr. Gary Sims’ story [above] is one of dozens we have heard about student loan debt. Most of the stories come from public education teachers, social workers and other professionals who will never earn a physician’s salary.

Hundreds of leaders assembled at St. Francis Xavier Catholic Church, arguing that the White House's rescission of DACA will harm 7 thousand recipients of DACA in Oklahoma, and 2 thousand in Tulsa, alone. Allied Communities of Tulsa Inspiring Our Neighbors (ACTION) leaders are demanding reforms that would allow current DACA holders to stay.

Argued Pastor Chris Moore, "All people are employed or are in school….and have to walk a tight line."