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Dec-11-2018 21:21printcomments

Religious Leaders Arrested at the Border in Support of Asylum-Seekers

"It is not only international law, it's basic human values."

border

(SAN DIEGO, Calif.) - Representatives of the California chapter of Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-CA), along with other local and national faith leaders, were arrested yesterday at the San Diego-Tijuana border in an act of peaceful civil disobedience in support of asylum-seekers and immigrants.

More than 400 people of faith -- including American Muslim leaders from across the nation such as Imam Omar Suleiman, Imam Zaid Shakir, Maytha Alhassen, and Ahmed Bedier --gathered at Border Field State Park in San Diego to begin a solemn procession to the border.

When the procession reached the law enforcement zone, border patrol agents dressed in riot gear blocked them from advancing to the border wall. In an act of civil disobedience, faith leaders moved forward to offer a ceremonial blessing. Thirty people were arrested.

"We stand today, tomorrow and every day, committed to ensuring that every human being receives dignified treatment and the right to seek refuge for themselves and their families," said CAIR-LA Executive Director Hussam Ayloush, who was taken into custody in an act of civil disobedience.

"It is not only international law, it's basic human values. Love, dignity and respect know no borders."

"It is our responsibility as people of faith and of all Americans to stand in solidarity with those being affected by Trump's xenophobic, racist policies in our borderlands," said CAIR-San Diego Advocacy and Policy Coordinator Mejgan Afshan.

"Today's action was a way to tell our sisters & brothers across the border that we stand with them and all those seeking asylum because it is a human right."

Yesterday's solidarity event launched a week of action called "Love Knows No Borders: A moral call for migrant justice" that began on Human Rights Day on December 10 and will end on International Migrants' Day on December 18. The event is one of many across the nation, organized by AFSC, in solidarity with immigrants in this country and crossing the border.

Participants of this national mobilization are calling on the United States government to end the detention and deportation of immigrants, respect the human right to migrate and end border militarization.

For more information about Love Knows No Borders: A Moral Call for Migrant Justice, visit: migrantjustice.afsc.org

Source: CAIR [America's largest Muslim civil liberties and advocacy organization. Its mission is to enhance understanding of Islam, protect civil rights, promote justice, and empower American Muslims.]

La misiĆ³n de CAIR es proteger las libertades civiles, mejorar la comprensiĆ³n del Islam, promover la justicia, y empoderar a los musulmanes en los Estados Unidos.

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