HOUSTON—Hundreds of Southeast Texas residents who gathered at a church in Houston Sunday hoped their chants would be heard all the way in Washington, D.C.
"Si se puede," the crowd yelled.
The group gathered at the Catholic Charismatic Center in the 1900 block of Cullen asking for what they call "humane immigration reform."
"We’re advocating for reform that allows documentation of immigrants and their families with a path to citizenship," said Rt. Rev. C. Bishop Andrew Doyle of the Episcopal Diocese of Texas. "We are advocating for affordable processes. We’re advocating for an environment where people are safe in their own communities no matter what their legal status is."
The event was an interfaith prayer service organized by the Metropolitan Organization, a group that defines itself as an advocate for power and leadership among ordinary citizens.
"We’re calling for policies that reunite families, that create safe and fair ways for people to access earned immigration. This is not a call for amnesty, this is a call for earned immigration," said Peggy Hahn of the Metropolitan Organization.
Not everyone at the prayer service was on the same page. Steve Mueller, who’s running for Congress, was not chanting with the crowd.
"We need to understand and respect that there are laws," he said.
In fact, Mueller brought along a copy of Arizona’s new – and controversial—illegal immigration law to the event.
"We need to enforce our borders. I mean, that needs to be a top priority and the law is just enforcing what the federal government should already be doing," said Mueller.
The prayer service Sunday was part of the Houston Area Interfaith Campaign for Human Immigration Reform. There will be more events in the future, including a common preaching day on this topic over the July 4 weekend.
