A bishop in El Paso, Texas, a popular U.S. entry point for illegal immigration, said statewide efforts to demonize migrants are a sad sight and fall squarely on Governor Greg Abbott.
Abbott has undoubtedly been the most vociferous public figure in decrying the federal government’s alleged inaction on illegal immigration, which has surged throughout the Biden administration and will reach a record high during the fiscal year 2023. In March 2021, he launched Operation Lone Star to build more border walls and use extra National Guard personnel to discourage migrants from coming illegally.
Between October and December, total border crossings surpassed 988,900, following a record 2.4 million migrant encounters at the US-Mexico border in fiscal 2023, up from over 1.7 million in 2021.
Texas officials, including Abbott, are attempting to take action without federal interference, waiting to see if it can enforce its own immigration laws, including arrests and deportations, through legislation known as Senate Bill 4 (S.B. 4), which was enacted by an 88-4 vote last year.
“You have seen the Humvees, concertina wire, and national guardsmen on television,” Bishop Mark Seitz of the Diocese of El Paso stated during a March 18 speech at Fairfield University, a Jesuit college in Connecticut, according to the National Catholic Reporter.
Seitz described Texas officials’ actions as “transparently political” and part of a “broader, brutal, historical project in Texas to criminalize and police people who migrate.”
“People of faith have a duty to resist these racist projects,” he went on to say.
Seitz is the chairman of the US Conference of Catholic Bishops’ (USCCB) Office of Migration, which establishes broad policies and direction for the church’s work in areas such as advocacy, education, refugee resettlement, and providing specialized services to at-risk and vulnerable populations such as trafficked children and unaccompanied minors.
Established on March 3, 1914, the Diocese of El Paso encompasses over 26,700 square miles, home to nine Texas counties, 56 parishes, 18 missions, and a Catholic population of 686,000.
On Wednesday, Texas officials, including Abbott, faced disappointing news as the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals rejected their request to implement S.B. 4 while the court examines its legality. This decision has been hailed as a triumph by civil rights organizations, further fueling the ongoing and heated legal battle that has even reached the U.S. Supreme Court.
According to Chief Judge Priscilla Richman, the Supreme Court has maintained for almost 150 years that the authority to manage immigration, including the entry, admission, and removal of noncitizens, rests solely with the federal government.
The lower-court decision has been upheld by the ruling, which means that the injunction will remain in place. The Fifth Circuit is scheduled to hear arguments on April 3 in New Orleans to determine whether the injunction should be upheld.
“The court made the correct decision by halting the enforcement of S.B. 4,” expressed El Paso County attorney Jo Anne Bernal in a statement shared with Newsweek. “We will persist in our pursuit of a court ruling that permanently blocks this law, which has already instilled significant fear and division within our community.”
According to reports, Seitz also criticized Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton for his office’s attempts to cut funding for Annunciation House. The shelter, a long-standing Catholic migrant shelter in El Paso, was accused by the AG of aiding illegal entry into the United States, harboring undocumented migrants, engaging in human smuggling, and running a stash house.
A district court judge in Texas recently criticized Paxton’s actions, stating that they were carried out without consideration for due process or fair play.
“The assault on Annunciation House signifies an increase in Texas’ endeavors in recent years to militarize the border and to pass laws that criminalize migration and individuals who migrate,” commented Seitz.
In an interview with Crux, a prominent online newspaper covering Catholic Church news, the bishop expressed his sadness over the hypothetical scenario in which Texas officials deport migrants without affording them the opportunity to go through the asylum process.
