Why I’ll Be at the New Sanctuary Coalition Gala on My Stepfather’s Birthday
This Thursday, November 21st, my stepfather Rufino Villas Lamoste would have been 74 years old. He died five years ago back home in Michigan. Detroit is my “back home.” But for Rufino, Manila was back home. He emigrated from the Philippines in the 1970s on a medical student visa, completing his residency in anesthesiology at Einstein Medical Center Philadelphia. He’d go on to become a beloved and respected anesthesiologist in the Metro Detroit area. This is where he’d meet my mother and become my stepfather. This is where Rufino and my mother, Carol, would bring my sister Liz into the world. This is where he lived with our mother until he passed away in 2014.
I owe so much to Rufino. He worked so hard for all of us. He saved money, invested money, all the while remaining a devout family man. He voted. He loved sports. He loved this country. He once drove us on a whirlwind tour through Philadelphia and New York — I saw the Liberty Bell, the Statue of Liberty, and Niagara Falls in half a week. He loved back home but he really loved the place that had allowed him to make a life of possibilities for all of us.
So I an grateful that the New Sanctuary Coalition (NSC) is hosting their annual gala this Thursday, November 21st — the same date as Rufino’s birthday. I will be in attendance. I support NSC because they not only stand up for immigrants, they walk side by side with them, whether it’s for ICE check-in accompaniments or their Jericho Walks around 26 Federal Plaza. Human rights and equal protection under the law are supposed to mean something in this country. Without us standing up for each other, despots will erode and destroy the best of this nation.
I first learned about New Sanctuary Coalition through their leader, Ravi Ragbir. Ravi is an immigrant activist and advocate who has been targeted by ICE. Despite a court-ordered stay of deportation, he must always worry if today the day that ICE going to detain him again and deport him away from his family and home. For Ravi, New York City is home. He and his family deserve peace and due process. So do all people in this country.
There are many ways to help. Consider supporting NSC by volunteering, by donation, or by gala attendance. Consider supporting the ACLU as well as they #SaveAsylum. Consider clicking to your Congressperson’s page now and telling him or her that immigrant rights matter to you and we can’t forget those suffering at the hands of this administration.
