REEL SOUTH

Hey, I'm Valerie June. Coming up on Reel South. -

Randall

Some laws are simply unjust. -

Valerie

A North Carolina church offers sanctuary to a grandmother facing deportation. -

Randall

There are times when people of faith have to make a choice. -

Valerie

But action over silence does come at some cost. They call it harboring a fugitive, and I think that those semantics are very important in this. It's not harboring a fugitive. It's offering sanctuary. -

Lesvi

What we want is for people to know that this is happening, because we're not the only ones. -

Valerie

Witness "Santuario," up next on Reel South.

laid-back blues music

musical vocalizing

"Man Done Wrong" by Valerie June

soft instrumental music

-

Reporter

In North Carolina, undocumented grandmother, Juana Luz Tobar Ortega is seeking sanctuary in an Episco-- -

Reporter

A church community in Greensboro has come together to provide sanctuary protection for a woman who was scheduled for deportation yesterday. -

Reporter

Ortega has checked in with immigration officials each year. In the end they have allowed her to stay, until now. Last month she was given this ankle monitor and told she needed to leave the U.S.

Juana speaking Spanish

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Reporter

ICE regards churches as sensitive locations, and they don't generally enter them to make arrests or detentions. -

Reporter

St. Barnabas' Episcopal Church says they're taking shifts to stay here with Juana. She can't leave. -

Reporter

The mother of four will live in this small room. For how long is anyone's guess.

Juana speaking Spanish

Juana speaking Spanish

gentle instrumental music

Sanctuary is not a legal concept. This is a ministry of social justice. American Friends Service Committee called, asking if we were considering offering sanctuary if there was anyone who needed it, and told us about Juana. We're a small congregation. But they're good folk. She's comin', I got-- - Did you talk to her? -

Woman

I got an email.

hymnal music

There are times when people of faith have to make a choice between serving the people that we believe God has called us to serve, and serving the government. And some laws are simply unjust. So we agreed to welcome Juana into sanctuary. Who do you say that I am. Jesus looked at his disciples and asked them that question. And Peter blurts it out, you are the Messiah, the son of God. But we have to know what that means. We have to know what the Messiah is there to do. Let's err on the side of hospitality. Err on the side of love and mercy. Not on judgment or condemnation. Err on the side of making sure that all people belong in the family.

people chattering quietly

There's my little girl. One, two, three, there.

Juana speaking Spanish

That's good pronunciation. How about these, want to do this? When is she coming here. - Mm hm. My husband is named Carlos. I am his wife. We have four children. Good job, good job. Have to see what's what here, I think I. We believe that Jesus would have done this, or something similar. And our priest emphasizes doing what Jesus would have you do. We all consider ourselves the body of Christ, right? And we're all brothers and sisters in it. Unfortunately there's some people who tend to get mixed up about that a little bit. I looked at St. Barnabas' Facebook page. There were two people that had given it thumbs down, and said, you ought to be ashamed of yourself and we have reported you. Well we know ICE knows where she is, she's got an ankle bracelet. Mm hm.

laughing

Show them your ankle bracelet. They know where she is, there was no secret. What are they gonna report? That we're harboring a fugitive. They call it harboring a fugitive, and I think that those semantics are very important in this. It's not harboring a fugitive, it's offering sanctuary. It' just people get upset, people get angry.

gentle instrumental music

Juana speaking Spanish

Thank you very much. - People I grew up with. -

Yeimy

Okay

speaking Spanish

okay? Relax, you're gonna be fine. We're gonna be right behind you. High five. - High five, okay. Today we're here with my family, representing my mother.

crowd cheering and clapping

You know what to say, okay. How are you all? - Good. Come on in. -

Girls

We want to deliver an invitation to Thom Tillis, Okay. -

Girls

For a cookout on the 4th of July to meet my grandmother. Okay, I will pass this along, thank you all.

crowd clapping and cheering

Juana speaking Spanish

We didn't even pray for our food. I did. - I did. Oh you did? I feel bad now.

Lesvi quietly praying

I'll pray again.

Lesvi speaking Spanish

cell phone ringing

Lesvi speaking Spanish

Whenever my mom first went into sanctuary, it was so overwhelming. Calls all the time. I remember I'd go to bed like 12 midnight, get up in the morning at 5, and you have to go to work. I was kind of like remembering where I was a child. My mom had came into this country and left us. And then it was gonna happen again. -

Yeimy

What we want is, for people to know that this is happening. You can't just turn away, because we're not the only ones.

reporter speaking Spanish

Levsi speaking Spanish

Juana speaking Spanish

Mm hm. -

Girl

Oh yeah. -

Levsi

She's not even that big. Yeah but that was whenever Carlitos was little. And they also had a big, like they changed it.

family chattering

This is when my mom first went to the U.S., when she was Carlos' girlfriend.

laughing

Oh, oh, there we go, look, dad and mom.

Carlos speaking Spanish

That's you?

Carlos speaking Spanish

So, I was scared of coming back over here. Have you heard noises?

Lesvi speaking Spanish

One time I was just getting some flowers right here. I looked over there and I saw something like, I didn't see the face, I saw the back. And I got really scared. And I told my grandma, but she didn't do nothing about it.

Lesvi speaking Spanish

Juana speaking Spanish

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Bridgeutt

There you go. Aie yi yi.

insects chirping

family praying in Spanish

family praying in Spanish

tense instrumental music

Lesvi speaking Spanish

I'm the one that gets her groceries every week. We don't know how long she's gonna be in sanctuary, so we gotta make the best out of it. We are thankful that she's still here. But we also have jobs, and we have families that we have to provide for. Luckily my husband is very, he's very supportive. And he knows that this is what I have to do for my mother. But it's really hard because I feel like I can't take over my life. But, God knows why he's doing it, and I gotta be supportive. I don't want to show this type of emotion in front of her, whenever I know she's already struggling, so. Just trying to hang on.

crowd chattering distantly

crowd clapping and cheering

Thank you all for being here today. This morning Minerva learned that a federal immigration judge had vacated her order for deportation.

crowd clapping and cheering

Thank you so much. And it means a lot to me to have my freedom back.

exhales deeply

Thank you. Thank you all.

crowd clapping

Juana giggling

Hi.

women speaking Spanish

Juana speaking Spanish

Minerva speaking Spanish

soft instrumental music

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Lesvi

Let's see, where is my. This is Bridgeutt. Look at her. Look, that's Lexli right there. That's me? - Mm hm. There's my mom. That's grandma. She just wants mom to leave. Go back to Guatemala. It was really hard at first. Because we were doubting is this the right decision. And we knew that a lot of people were proabaly not gonna accept, I mean, we have family members that are still like, she needs to go, but, we're the ones going through this. People out there have no idea. And my fear, I felt like I had pushed her into it. And then I spoke to her and I said, you tell me what you want, and I will accept it. And if you want to leave, then it's okay. I will love you, I'm not gonna forget about you. But you tell me what you want. Because I don't want anyone to blame me for you being there.

woman speaking Spanish

girl speaking Spanish

Juana speaking Spanish

reporter speaking faintly

Carlos sighing

people chattering faintly

Oh, you're welcome.

people chattering

piano music

Hi Wanda. - You look great in that. Ah, thank you. I don't think we can afford to be silent anymore. The question isn't if something is wrong. We know it is. The question is what will we do? And I'd prefer, if I'm gonna err, to err on the side of doing something, and refusing to sit by and watch families be torn apart. There's a Celtic notion of thin places. When the distance between earth and heaven is shortened. And if you pause, and breathe, and get quiet, you can see through it, you can hear through it. I want to suggest to you that over the last seven months, St. Barnabas has become one of those thin places. Amen. -

Congregation

Amen.

"Silent Night" by Joseph Mohr and Franz Xaver Gruber

Juana singing in Spanish

Juana speaking Spanish

insects chirping

Ta da! - Hello!

Juana speaking Spanish

Minerva speaking Spanish

soft instrumental music

laid-back blues music

"Man Done Wrong" by Valerie June