As I have observed the Trump Administration over the last few months, I have yet to see decisions that make America greater. Instead, I have seen the Administration use cruelty toward immigrants.
God created each human being in his image and likeness (Genesis 1:27, NRSVCE). Immigrants do not deserve the cruel treatment they are receiving. God loves them.
Deception
For many years, President Donald Trump has falsely described the immigrant population in the United States.
During his campaign in 2015, he said, “They’re bringing drugs, they’re bringing crime, they’re rapists, and some, I assume, are good people.” In 2024, he said “The Democrats say, ‘Please don’t call them animals. They’re humans.’ I said, ‘No, they’re not humans, they’re not humans. They’re animals,’” And, “Joe Biden is ‘letting millions of people from jails, from prisons, from insane asylums, from mental institutions, drug dealers, pour in.”
American citizens are more likely to commit serious crimes than immigrants. The FBI estimates that 29.5 percent of adult American citizens have criminal records, based on statistics for those arrested on felony charges. (This percentage is likely lower because it does not count only those convicted of crimes.) CNN says that fewer than 8 percent of immigrants taken into custody since October 2024 had serious criminal convictions.
One response the Administration has when Americans question the immigration policies is that they are carrying out a mandate from the American people. Without President Trump’s lies, would Americans have voted to deport immigrants? If they could have seen what the Administration’s tactics would be, how would they have voted?
Cruelty Toward Immigrants
Throughout the process of arresting immigrants and sending them elsewhere, the process is unnecessarily cruel.
Arrests and Detention
Not only are the arrests made roughly with masked officers and no warrants, the incarceration and destination for these people are cruel. Recently, the U.S. Customs and Border Protection repealed protections for pregnant women and babies: the requirement to provide extra medical care, privacy for breastfeeding, and the mandate that those imprisoning immigrants with babies have diapers and unexpired baby formula. Recently, a woman who was five months pregnant, delivered her stillborn child after days of begging for medical care.
Destinations
The Trump Administration has been sending immigrants to a prison in El Salvador known for torture and to third countries, meaning neither the immigrant’s home country nor the USA.
The CECOT (Center for the Confinement of Terrorism) in El Salvador was the destination for over 200 men early in the Trump administration. The president of El Salvador, Nayib Bukele, has used CECOT and other tools, such as suspending human rights, to stamp out gang influences. These prisoners never go outside and have no planned release date. Does this include the immigrants sent there by the Trump Administration? Should illegal immigrants receive this life-long death sentence?
The Supreme Court is allowing the Trump Administration to send immigrants to South Sudan and other foreign countries with no notice. In 1994, the Senate ratified the Convention Against Torture which bars deportation or extradition to countries where a person might be tortured. Without notice, a deportee cannot challenge the deportation for fear of torture. I recently sat next to a former classmate at a high school reunion who is now with the State Department in South Sudan. She lives alone because it is too dangerous for her family to live with her. “The United Nations recently warned about food insecurity in the country, which is also facing political instability and escalating violence.”
Send Immigrants to Home Countries, Unless Too Dangerous
Why should a non-violent immigrant spend the rest of his life in CECOT because the Trump Administration was too sloppy to make sure he was a serious criminal? Why should other immigrants end up in places where they know no one, cannot speak the language, and in the case of South Sudan, could easily die from violence or starvation?
If immigrants must leave our country, send them back to their own countries where they already know the language, likely have some relatives, so have a chance of recreating a life for themselves and their families. The exception would be situations where an immigrant would be in danger in his or her home country. At least, send them to countries where they know the language, perhaps not too far from home.
The Deportation Process is UnChristian and UnAmerican
Immigrants do not need to be grabbed and thrown to the ground by masked people. Coming to the United States as an immigrant should not merit lifetime imprisonment or death. The current deportation process is inhumane and does not treat people like God created them in his image. President Trump has already said that he does not consider immigrants to be people as God does.
Sending immigrants to CECOT or to third countries like South Sudan makes it likely that they will die sooner or later. If they cannot go to their home countries, please treat them as you would want to be treated and give them the opportunity to start over. Cruelty toward immigrants is not necessary.
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