29 October 2018 - True North Organizing Network spiritual leaders and clergy will be hosting a press conference in support of Humboldt County Measure K and keeping families together Thursday, November 1 at 11:00 am at the Humboldt Unitarian Universalist Fellowship, 24 Fellowship Way Bayside, CA 95524. Members of the press are invited to hear testimony from True North Organizing Network leaders who are affected by immigration enforcement. Accompanying their testimonies will be statements from local and national spiritual and faith leaders, including Reverend Alvin Herring, Executive Director of Faith In Action (formerly PICO National Network).
As a multi-faith network guided by values, our Measure K endorsement is an expression of our desire to promote human dignity and keep families together. We believe in sanctuary as a sacred and safe space, where people are free to live out their lives with peace, no matter where they come from. All of our spiritual and faith traditions emphasize the sacredness of family. Our spiritual and faith traditions also call us to resist racism in all forms. We see the current harsh implementation of anti-immigrant policies as an attempt to return this country to archaic past immigration policies based purely on race and country of origin.
Minister Bryan Jessup of the Humboldt Unitarian Universalist Fellowship states, "As faith leaders, we stand up for the humanity and inherent worth of every person. In this country, our economy was built on slave labor and now relies on the cheap and disempowered labor of immigrants particularly of color. Our country’s decision makers harass immigrants to keep them disempowered and dehumanized. We have to stand up for the rights and humanity of immigrants.”
Richard Kossow, of the Humboldt Unitarian Universalist Social Action Committee adds, “It is central to the Unitarian Universalist faith tradition to stand with those suffering from oppression. Recurrent xenophobic US immigration policies and enforcement devastate countless foreign nationals entering and living in the US, often fleeing oppression in their homelands fostered by US political and economic interests. Unitarian Universalists will do what we can to bring about humane justice for our sisters and brothers injured by our government’s injustice.”
Measure K as a local policy would bolster the California Values Act, and ensure local tax money will not be unnecessarily spent on federal duties. Data shows that 41% of ICE arrests happen when someone is transferred from a local jail, and this policy will limit the chances of that happening in Humboldt County. True North Organizing Network leaders have worked with Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office since 2017 to increase transparency around immigration enforcement. In 2017, True North Organizing Network Leaders also built a Humboldt Rapid Response Network to provide support to those being unjustly affected by U.S. immigration policies in partnership with ACLU of Northern California and community allies.
In this moment, we are called to stand on the side of justice and protect the people who have been affected by the unjust immigration policies and systems that perpetuate trauma and pain.
In this moment, we encourage voters to also stand with us and other supporters and vote “YES” on Measure K. The only way that Humboldt County can continue to thrive as a community is to unite, work to keep families together, and promote belonging in the place we call home.
True North works to promote civic participation including voter registration and education, our organization, including staff and volunteers, does not endorse, support, or oppose candidates for office. For more information, please visit our website at truenorthorganizing.org.