CHARLOTTESVILLE UNITED IN ADVANCE  

This letter from the Charlottesville Clergy Collective, was inspired by Chicago United in Advance .  If you’d like to sign, either individually, as a faith community, or as a community organization, please do so here

Dear Charlottesville,In response to the current federal administration’s many documented abuses of power and violations of our Constitution, some institutions have “Obeyed in Advance,” failing to challenge violations of the law and norms of basic human decency.

With respect to immigration enforcement, legal immigrants, peaceful protesters and members of the press have been forcefully arrested, families separated, and children taken. Agents have employed forms of intimidation and violence to incite fear, chaos and panic.  A mother has been murdered; a VA nurse has been executed.  These tactics have been used against observers expressing their Constitutional rights. Administration officials have lied, calling its victims “domestic terrorists.”

When enforcement actions target people based on skin color and language, not evidence, when it happens at schools and workplaces without regard for proper legal procedure, when they are carried out by masked agents in unmarked vehicles, every single person in our country suffers. These tactics don’t make us safer; they weaken the very foundational fabric of our country.

The Charlottesville Clergy Collective represents diverse faith communities and traditions from the Charlottesville area. We join together in opposing these extreme enforcement methods. While immigration policy is complex and opinions differ on best immigration practices, we agree on this: these lawless tactics of fear and intimidation are not welcome in our city.

As faith leaders and supported by community faith allies, we all pledge together: We will not obey in advance out of fear. We expect to follow the law; we challenge federal agents to do the same. We are UNITED IN ADVANCE - organizing and speaking out to counter the unlawful actions of ICE and CBP and other federal agents.
Together, we reaffirm what has always made our community strong – our care and commitment to one another. We will protect our neighbors.
 
Charlottesville Clergy Collective, 
Pastor Brenda Brown-Grooms, Past President,
and Don Gathers, Current President

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