immigrationIt’s a well-known fact that Goshen, IN, draws in a number of undocumented immigrants. The Record does its best to cover the events and issues surrounding immigration in the GC community.
It’s a well-known fact that Goshen, IN, draws in a number of undocumented immigrants. The Record does its best to cover the events and issues surrounding immigration in the GC community.
November 16, 2017
Students attend MCC UN seminar
In the pursuit of peace, it is easy to become overwhelmed by turmoil. At the 2017 MCC-UN Office Student Seminar this past October, speakers and students alike worked to grapple with such problems in the context of Central American immigration. Taking place October 26-28 in New York City, the conference worked under the title “Migration, Faith, and Action: An Exploration of the Central American Experience.” Six Goshen College students--Jenae Longenecker, Rudi Mucaj, Vanessa Navarro, Bekah Schrag, Sijan Shrestha and Mandira Panta--made the trek to the UN headquarters for the annual seminar, along with Joe Liechty, professor of peace, justice and...
November 9, 2017
GC alum Lisa Koop works for justice in immigration law
In place of a receptionist, there’s a sticky note stuck to the front door that reads “Please Knock,” and there are toys in the small lobby for children to play with. There are big, inviting windows, and, most importantly, clients continue to stream in. Koop, a Goshen College alum, works for the National Immigrant Justice Center (NIJC), a Chicago-based non-profit that provides affordable legal defense to immigrants and refugees. Koop began at the NIJC in 2006 and helped to open a Goshen branch in 2014, in addition to the South Bend and Chicago locations. The new office, located at 110...
September 14, 2017
Goshen to support DREAMers
On Sept. 5, anxiety fell upon many in the Goshen community as President Donald Trump ordered the end of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program. Since its conception in 2012, approximately 800,000 young people have benefited from DACA, including a handful of Goshen College students. The policy allowed young adults who were brought into the United States at a young age the opportunity to work and study in the US legally without fear of immediate deportation. Now, according to the New York Times, officials said that DACA recipients could become eligible for deportation as early as March 2018....
April 6, 2017
Faith in action: Schlabach reflects on injustice
Tina Stoltzfus Schlabach spends a lot of time inside Eloy Detention Center. Schlabach is there by choice, and she can leave whenever she wants. She chooses to return as part of a group of visitors time and time again to be watched by a guard in a gray visitation room while she talks, laughs and sometimes cries with women being held in the immigration detention center. Eloy Detention Center is a for-profit prison-like facility that houses around 1,400 immigrants from various countries. Schlabach is part of a community visitation program run through Casa Mariposa, an organization in the Tucson area...
February 23, 2017
A day without immigrants
Generally, Elijah Lora, a first-year, feels that protests are not effective in changing public policy, but he went to a protest last Thursday anyway. A week ago, Goshen High School students organized a protest in support of the “Day Without Immigrants” movement, and Goshen College students were among those protesting in downtown Goshen. “I am very much aware that racism and prejudice still exist in the city of Goshen,” Lora said, “but this protest wasn’t for the racists.” After realizing that protesting doesn’t always mean opposing those who disagree with you, Lora decided he need to show support by attending...
February 2, 2017
Elkhart County HOPE provides student support
Richard Aguirre, alongside many others, is attempting to bring hope to the undocumented community of Elkhart County. Aguirre, director of corporate and foundation relations at Goshen College, has helped create a network called Elkhart County HOPE. According to Aguirre, Elkhart County HOPE, “aims to be a collaborative network of educators, churches, nonprofit organizations, businesses and individuals who are willing to help immigrants (and refugees) who may be caught up in the latest enforcements of the Trump administration.” The network was created after a convocation held in response to Election Day. After the convocation, Latino students flocked to Aguirre, Rocio Diaz...
January 19, 2017
Goshen community comes together for immigration reform and DACA
“Hoping and praying for the best, but planning for the worst.” That’s what Richard Aguirre, director of corporate and foundation relations, is doing in the days before Donald Trump is inaugurated. Aguirre and Jose Chiquito, a first-year, were invited to speak at a press conference in South Bend with the Community Coalition for Immigration Reform and St. Joe Valley Jobs with Justice. On Jan. 14, Chiquito and Aguirre spoke in support of DACA, the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program that Trump plans on repealing. “It was an honor to be able to speak at a gathering that was part...
January 19, 2017
Marriage and immigration: Q&A with Alexa Valdez
Alexa Valdez, a senior social work major, learned at a very young age what it means to make a commitment to someone. At 18, Valdez stood in front of a judge, alongside her husband, and took an oath to love and to cherish him until the day he dies. Valdez reflects on that commitment and her husband’s lack of documentation. Being a Latina in the United States, have you ever been directly affected by the topic of immigration? My spouse is currently undocumented. Over the years, this topic has become extremely personal to me because it affects the way we...
December 1, 2016
GC works to support Latino students
In support of undocumented immigrant students, President Brenneman has signed a statement that calls for the continuation of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program. Along with 424 other college presidents, Brenneman wanted to show his support for students with DACA status. He also wanted to make a public statement on behalf of Goshen College. “We want to be especially alert and advocate for the continuation of the program,” he said. In the next few days, Brenneman plans to share a public letter to the campus community regarding the college’s commitment to all students, especially those that are vulnerable....
April 16, 2015
Mock wall divides campus
As if to mark the beginning of the Easter holidays, Goshen College campus was fenced off, with the mysterious words “Coming Soon on Monday” painted on a small cardboard poster. The fences were strategically placed across two sidewalks, between the Science and the Administration buildings as well as the Kauffman and the Science buildings. Gates wide open, the fence held no significance as people biked, walked and jogged through to the other side. Finally, the long awaited Monday arrived. On the evening of April 6, 2015, the fence gates were closed off with two students patrolling either side. Large posters...
November 6, 2014
Novelist Speaks About Immigration, Poverty
Award-winning novelist Reyna Grande spoke about her books, life and immigration at several events on campus this Tuesday and Wednesday. Grande has a bachelor’s degree in creative writing and a master’s of fine arts degree. In addition to being a novelist, she also teaches creative writing at UCLA Extension. Grande travels the country giving lectures at colleges on her novels and memoirs, as well as on the issues of immigration and the struggles she went through to obtain the level of education she has now. Originally from Mexico, Grande entered the country illegally to be with her father in the...
September 17, 2014
Constitution Day Begins Due Process Discussion
During Wednesday’s convocation, two local lawyers spoke on due process for child refuges from Central America. Lisa Koop, an associate director of legal services at the National Immigration Justice Center and a 1999 graduate, said, “Anyone who cares about human rights, immigrant rights, children’s rights, or really any rights should be passionate about due process.” The lawyers, Koop and Felipe Merino, owner and managing attorney at Merino Law Firm, P.C., spoke about their work as immigration lawyers and about what has become important to them in these positions. “Fundamentally, procedural due process involves notice and the right to be heard,” Koop said. “Due process demands...
January 15, 2014
Journey to the College Classroom
Alma Rosa Carrillo Flores woke up every morning to breathe the musty Mexico City air. She sauntered sleepily out of her small, pink toy factory-themed bedroom to meet her brother, mother and grandparents in the kitchen for, possibly, her favorite breakfast of beans with mayonnaise and a souped-up ham sub sandwich called ham cake. “Ahh, it’s like heaven!” Alma exclaimed, remembering this meal of her childhood. “And café! Not coffee, but café! It’s just a little plastic cup with Nescafé and Alpura Mexican milk. It’s delicious!” Their house was three stories high, a narrow rectangle of cement and red brick...
October 6, 2013
DREAMer speaks on immigration
Wednesday, Goshen College welcomed Dara Marquez, DREAM Act advocate and winner of WNIT Public Television’s Michana’s Rising Star contest. Marquez was invited to speak during Hispanic Heritage Month by ZulmaPrieto, adjunct professor of Latino Studies. “I think she embodies the struggles and the resilience of a lot of young people who are the present and the future of the country,” said Prieto. Marquez opened by reciting her compilation of poetry by Bobby Lefebre entitled “We Know How to Climb.” Her performance was followedby the story of how she came from Apan, Hildalgo, Mexico as a three-year-old and went on to...
December 6, 2012
Jankova brings home state journalism award
Last Saturday the Hoosier State Press Association (HSPA) and the Indiana Collegiate Press Association (ICPA) announced the winners of their 2012 state journalism contests. Bojana Jankova, a Goshen College junior, found herself among them. Jankova placed second in the Feature stories category for her piece, “Undocumented immigrant tells her story on stage,” which was printed in a 2012 spring edition of The Record. Jankova didn't even realize she had been entered into the contest. “I had no idea that I was entered into the competition until Prof. Duane Stoltzfus sent me an e-mail informing me that I was one of the finalists in...