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The
United Methodist Church in Claremont, about 30 miles east of Los
Angeles, built the display last weekend to draw attention to the
plight of migrants and refugees in the United States.
"We don't see this as political at all, we see this as
theological," said the church's pastor, Reverend Karen Clark
Ristine. "We know that this infant baby Jesus ... grew up to be
a Christ who calls us to compassion for our neighbor, compassion
for one another."The Nativity display, which was installed
Sunday night, shows the Holy family separated in their own cages
each topped with barbed wire. The baby Jesus is wrapped in
silver Mylar, similar to ones given to migrants at detention
centers to use as blankets.
While the church makes no mention of Trump administration
policies, some visitors saw it as a slam against the president.
"I think is disgusting. I think it's political and this is aimed
at Trump," said Tony Papa, who came to the display. "If I were a
member of this church, I'd drop out, I really would, it's very
disgusting."
SANCTUARY STATUTESPresident Donald Trump has made cracking down
on immigration a central issue of his 2020 re-election campaign.
His administration has worked to restrict asylum access in the
United States in an effort to curb the number of mostly Central
American families arriving at the U.S.-Mexico border.
Trump and his top officials have argued that most migrants
travel to the United States for economic reasons and lack valid
claims to protection.
California, which shares a border with Mexico, has adopted
"sanctuary" statutes that limit cooperation with federal
immigration enforcement when it comes to rounding up and
deporting undocumented immigrants.
Irene Reyes, a tourist from Arizona, stopped by the nativity
scene and became emotional as she talked about its
message."That's what's actually happening," she said about the
migrant children detained in cages at detention centers along
the border earlier this year. "And it's like it was brought out
to the world and then nothing happened.
"And if you think about it now during the holidays, that these
kids, sorry, aren't with their families and what are we going to
do about it? ... Like we see it and then we close our eyes to it
and it's not right," Reyes said.
(Reporting by Norma Galeana; writing by Bill Tarrant; Editing by
Michael Perry)
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