Jordan Garcia
PRESS RELEASE FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
April 16, 2025
Contact: Wayne Laws, 303-995-4975
pastorwaynelaws@comcast.net
COLORADO FAITH LEADERS SPEAK IMMIGRATION TRUTHS
Faith Leader Statement: Truths About Immigration
DENVER, Colorado—On April 16, 2025, over 100 Colorado interfaith leaders and supporters gathered at Montview Boulevard Presbyterian Church in Denver to publicly release the Faith Leader Statement: Truths About Immigration.
Over 230 interfaith leaders across Colorado, including faith leaders from our community, compelled to speak and promote the truth and counter dehumanizing falsehoods that lead to and foster prejudice, injustice, and oppression within our communities, signed the joint statement proclaiming truths about immigration.
The statement begins with the assertion: “Immigrants are part of our families, neighborhoods, and faith communities. They are our friends and work associates. They work at the businesses we patronize. Their children are classmates with our children. Immigrants are part of the very fabric of our society with the same dreams that we have for ourselves and our families.”
“Each of the interfaith faith leaders…who have signed the statement have their own reasons for doing so and their own stories and life experiences,” explained Rev. Wayne Laws. “However, the one constant for all is our conviction that we are called to speak the truth. To speak truth to the people and communities we serve and to speak truth to power.”
“Colorado thrives when everyone, regardless of immigration status, can live, work and contribute to our society without fear”. Gina McAfee, Statewide Coordinator of Colorado Immigrant Protection Teams continued, “With this letter, we affirm that immigrants fuel our economy, make our communities safer and enrich our lives.”
Anne Kleinkopf, of the Interfaith Immigration Network, asserted, “Today we say to those immigrant neighbors, to our immigrant friends, our own familia: We, people of faith and people of good will, we will stand against and act against the demonization of human beings. We will stand for and act for the honoring and protecting of human lives, here, in our communities. We will stand up for justice, for fair treatment, for humane action, for truth. We say to our immigrant friends, family, neighbors –We are with you.”
By publicly speaking the truth, these Colorado faith leaders aim to create a more honest and factual narrative to guide our local and national decision-making and create safe and welcoming communities where all people can pursue their sacred and undeniable rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.
Members of the Immigrant Protection Team, a project of the American Friends Service Committee, and the Interfaith Immigration Network crafted the statement. The entire text of the statement and the signers can be found here.
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The American Friends Service Committee (AFSC) promotes a world free of violence, inequality, and oppression. Guided by the Quaker belief in the divine light within each person, we nurture the seeds of change and the respect for human life to fundamentally transform our societies and institutions. We work with people and partners worldwide, of all faiths and backgrounds, to meet urgent community needs, challenge injustice, and build peace.