Pope Francis’ Last Act Was to Give JD Vance a Lesson About Migrants ... It was an entirely fitting final set piece from one of the few world leaders who had the courage—and political immunity—to stand up to and criticize, often in blistering terms, both presidencies of Donald Trump, explicitly calling his migration policies a “disgrace” and “not Christian.” → https://www.thedailybeast.com/pope-francis-last-act-was-to-give-jd-vance-a-lesson-about-migrants
We are urged always to imagine the worst case scenario and plan for that. Supposedly, that means anything less than the worst case will be part of the worst case scenario. But for me in this issue, and all those lawyers didn't even blink - barring lawyers from federal court rooms is insane and unenforceable, so why did these lawyers not laugh in his face? Sure, Just Trump could order armed guards, but that also cannot be legal. This whole jellyfishing response from the caving lawyers also tells me they believe expedience, instead of opposition, is appropriate. Another reason I would avoid those firms if I had a legal representation need. If indeed Just Trump is empowered all by his widdo sewf to do this, why has no other President taken such drastic actions? Because they are lawfully upholding and protecting the Constitution and obviously not insane.
Catholic Church repudiates concepts that fail to recognize inherent human rights of indigenous peoples, including what has become known as legal & political “doctrine of discovery”. ↓
The aforementioned “doctrine” is to be found in several papal documents, such as the Bulls Dum Diversas (1452), Romanus Pontifex (1455) and Inter Caetera (1493).
re: U.S. Expansionism --- as recently as CITY OF SHERRILL, NEW YORK, PETITIONER v. ONEIDA INDIAN NATION OF NEW YORK et al. [March 29, 2005] == Justice Ruth Ginsburg delivered the opinion of the Court in which she surreptitiously reaffirmed “Manifest Destiny” in her writing about “Doctrine of Discovery” from which it was spawned → Footnote 1 Under the “doctrine of discovery,” County of Oneida v. Oneida Indian Nation of N. Y., 470 U. S. 226, 234 (1985) (Oneida II), “fee title to the lands occupied by Indians when the colonists arrived became vested in the sovereign— first the discovering European nation and later the original States and the United States,“ Oneida Indian Nation of N. Y. v. County of Oneida, 414 U. S. 661, 667 (1974) (Oneida I). In the original 13 States, “fee title to Indian lands,“ or “the pre-emptive right to purchase from the Indians, was in the State.“.
“Be strong of mind, O chiefs: Carry no anger & hold no grudges. Think not forever of yourselves, O chiefs, nor of your own generation. “
“Think of continuing generations of our families, think of our grandchildren & of those yet unborn, whose faces are coming from beneath the ground. “ – Deganawidah (ca. 1550-ca. 1600)
I’m a longtime Ink subscriber, a Brooklyn resident. My husband and I have greeted you, Anand, a couple of times when you had a kid or two with you, getting ice cream at Ample Hills across the street from us.
I have found both your own online presence and your recommendations of people to read/follow invaluable during this terrifying time. I recommend you to everyone as a great resource.
One of your pieces that I found most helpful was the interview with Anat Shenker-Osorio; in particular, her advice to “wear your beliefs.” Since then, I have worn a small handmade badge which simply reads NO TRUMP/NO MUSK/NO RACISTS/NO NAZIS! Usually as I wear this around the city, one person or pair/group of people per day will respond (positively) in some way. Recently, three people in one day. I have been surprised, though, to find almost no one else “wearing their beliefs” except during protests, because it is so clear how much people really want to recognize their feelings in others, enough so that they will approach a stranger to say “I like your badge.”
Shenker-Osorio also talks about local action, action by just a few people, regular people becoming leaders by leading. I’m writing to you today to tell you about the next belief I am wearing. I have added a button. The text is I STAND WITH IMMIGRANTS, above a large inverted blue triangle.
Perhaps you know that Nazis forced the prisoners in the camps to wear identifying fabric triangles on their uniforms: pink/black for LGBTQ, yellow for Jews, red for political opponents, and blue for migrants. Hence, these buttons, which are part of a campaign to promote the wearing and understanding of the blue triangle. This campaign is being organized by the group Witness at the Border (www.witnessattheborder.org), which was founded by my husband, Josh Rubin. You can ask Amy Cohen about him; we all met at Tornillo, TX in 2018, when there was a migrant children's tent prison there.
WAB has been dedicated since 2018 to the cause of the right for humans to migrate and to be treated with dignity. Most recently, they were responsible for providing the data on ICE flights that was used in court to prove the timing of Trump’s illegal “deportation” flights to El Salvador.
Today, Josh is in Martinsburg, West Virginia. He has joined another member of the group, a man who decided to dress in a concentration camp uniform, wear a blue triangle, hold an explanatory sign and stand on the street in Chicago, where he lives. He bears witness to what our government is doing in our name.
This morning, they intend to stand together in front of the office of Rep. Riley Moore, who stood in front of the prisoners in CECOT and had his photo taken giving two thumbs up. They will read the list of prisoners in CECOT. Say their names. They hope to speak to the congressman. The press release of the event is copied below.
If you possibly can, I would ask you to read about the event and the broader Blue Triangle Solidarity campaign. Perhaps you would consider interviewing Josh when he comes home.
Thank you very much for your time and for your work.
Very Sincerely,
Melissa Bowen
“The Unknown Concentration Camp Prisoner” standing vigil to protest sending migrants to El Salvador
Martinsburg, WV — Lee Goodman, a volunteer with the migrant advocacy group Witness at the Border, will stand outside the office of Rep. Riley Moore dressed in a replica of a World War II Nazi concentration camp prisoner uniform. The vigil takes place on the 80th anniversary of the liberation of the Sachsenhausen concentration camp.
Last week, during the Christian Holy Week and the Jewish Passover observance, Rep. Moore posted a photo of himself giving a “thumbs up” while standing in front of migrants imprisoned in a concentration camp in El Salvador.
“We should give serious consideration to the similarities between what our country is doing and what the Nazis did. Hitler did not start with death camps. He started with concentration camps, and he built on a history of persecution and government-endorsed pogroms,” said Mr. Goodman. “Horrible things happen in the El Salvador camp. El Salvador boasts that prisoners never get out alive.”
Goodman believes that the imprisonment in the U.S. of Americans of Japanese, Italian, and German ancestry during World War II, and the relocation of Native Americans in the 1800s, also points to the grievous error of putting migrants in concentration camps today. “Our government mostly called them relocation or assembly centers and internment camps. But the survivors today call them what they were – concentration camps,” said Goodman.
The uniform jacket that Goodman wears has a blue triangle sewn onto it. Migrants in Nazi camps had to wear blue triangles. Jews wore yellow triangles. LGBTQ people wore pink and black triangles.
Goodman is conducting his vigil in conjunction with Witness At The Border, an immigration advocacy group that was instrumental in bringing public pressure to close immigrant child detention camps during President Trump's first term and has continued to stand witness to the situation on the U.S./Mexico border.
Who: Witness At The Border, a national migrant advocacy group
What: “The Unknown Concentration Camp Prisoner” standing vigil to protest sending migrants to El Salvador
Where: Outside the District office of Rep. Riley Moore, 739 Winchester Avenue, Martinsburg, WV
When: Tuesday, April 22, 2025 11:00 am – 12:00 noon
Pope’s official Easter sermon Sunday criticized hostility toward immigrants and international aid, a trademark of the Trump administration. He met VPOTUS on Sunday after having his deputy Cardinal Pietro Parolin and the Vatican Foreign Minister Archbishop Paul Gallagher meet with Vance on Saturday. → https://newrepublic.com/post/194178/pope-francis-jd-vance-lesson-immigrants-death
Thank you both for your insights. I always feel more empowered after listening to you and your guests, Anand. I see in my community the contagion courage!
Thank you both for this thoughtful conversation! Michael, I agree with your statement to Anand, "Thank you for making us all smarter!" And, Anand, I'm still chuckling and nodding my head over, "I'm concerned for his lower back!"
Anand, What you say at the end, keeping the arms open and resisting the people in power rather than their followers is interesting and important. But, what about resisting the EVIL that all of them are embracing; the leaders and followers? By this I mean de-personalize the evil. This is what the late Pope strove to do, right? He lived in the light as he could see it, not grabbing glory in his power, riches, etc.. but focusing on the living of the holy as he saw it (I am not Catholic BTW..) and this living his values/principles helped detach his statements and platforms from people to focus on ideas. Evil is not a person, place, or thing, it is a multifaceted idea that uses whoever is weak or open to being influenced. Your co-host, thought the trump&co thing was grand at one time, now that he sees it for what it is, perhaps he is not as enthusiastic about it! Beware of pining for better days of 'influence' Michael! Sometimes this shows through when you talk....! Evil will use whoever gives it a body to express it. Both of you bring valid points to think about. May we all follow our highest sense of good, and may it look more like the Pope's practice than trump&co.
Watched this Anand. Well done. Thank you for your voice and your courage♥️🇺🇸
Pope Francis’ Last Act Was to Give JD Vance a Lesson About Migrants ... It was an entirely fitting final set piece from one of the few world leaders who had the courage—and political immunity—to stand up to and criticize, often in blistering terms, both presidencies of Donald Trump, explicitly calling his migration policies a “disgrace” and “not Christian.” → https://www.thedailybeast.com/pope-francis-last-act-was-to-give-jd-vance-a-lesson-about-migrants
Definitely my favorite Pope during my lifetime.
We are urged always to imagine the worst case scenario and plan for that. Supposedly, that means anything less than the worst case will be part of the worst case scenario. But for me in this issue, and all those lawyers didn't even blink - barring lawyers from federal court rooms is insane and unenforceable, so why did these lawyers not laugh in his face? Sure, Just Trump could order armed guards, but that also cannot be legal. This whole jellyfishing response from the caving lawyers also tells me they believe expedience, instead of opposition, is appropriate. Another reason I would avoid those firms if I had a legal representation need. If indeed Just Trump is empowered all by his widdo sewf to do this, why has no other President taken such drastic actions? Because they are lawfully upholding and protecting the Constitution and obviously not insane.
I am Grateful to Pope Francis ☺ for leading the Church into its 3-30-23 Vatican repudiation of the “Doctrine of Discovery”, antithetical to Catholic faith → https://press.vatican.va/content/salastampa/en/bollettino/pubblico/2023/03/30/230330b.html
On 3-30-23 → https://press.vatican.va/content/salastampa/en/bollettino/pubblico/2023/03/30/230330b.html
Catholic Church repudiates concepts that fail to recognize inherent human rights of indigenous peoples, including what has become known as legal & political “doctrine of discovery”. ↓
Rome (Vatican News) 3 Mar 2023 → https://www.vaticannews.va/en/vatican-city/news/2023-03/vatican-formally-repudiates-doctrine-of-discovery.html
The aforementioned “doctrine” is to be found in several papal documents, such as the Bulls Dum Diversas (1452), Romanus Pontifex (1455) and Inter Caetera (1493).
re: U.S. Expansionism --- as recently as CITY OF SHERRILL, NEW YORK, PETITIONER v. ONEIDA INDIAN NATION OF NEW YORK et al. [March 29, 2005] == Justice Ruth Ginsburg delivered the opinion of the Court in which she surreptitiously reaffirmed “Manifest Destiny” in her writing about “Doctrine of Discovery” from which it was spawned → Footnote 1 Under the “doctrine of discovery,” County of Oneida v. Oneida Indian Nation of N. Y., 470 U. S. 226, 234 (1985) (Oneida II), “fee title to the lands occupied by Indians when the colonists arrived became vested in the sovereign— first the discovering European nation and later the original States and the United States,“ Oneida Indian Nation of N. Y. v. County of Oneida, 414 U. S. 661, 667 (1974) (Oneida I). In the original 13 States, “fee title to Indian lands,“ or “the pre-emptive right to purchase from the Indians, was in the State.“.
“Be strong of mind, O chiefs: Carry no anger & hold no grudges. Think not forever of yourselves, O chiefs, nor of your own generation. “
“Think of continuing generations of our families, think of our grandchildren & of those yet unborn, whose faces are coming from beneath the ground. “ – Deganawidah (ca. 1550-ca. 1600)
Thanks for this!!!
A travesty, the Easter Egg Hunt.
Thank you both for this and for your courage.
Small acts of courage:
I’m a longtime Ink subscriber, a Brooklyn resident. My husband and I have greeted you, Anand, a couple of times when you had a kid or two with you, getting ice cream at Ample Hills across the street from us.
I have found both your own online presence and your recommendations of people to read/follow invaluable during this terrifying time. I recommend you to everyone as a great resource.
One of your pieces that I found most helpful was the interview with Anat Shenker-Osorio; in particular, her advice to “wear your beliefs.” Since then, I have worn a small handmade badge which simply reads NO TRUMP/NO MUSK/NO RACISTS/NO NAZIS! Usually as I wear this around the city, one person or pair/group of people per day will respond (positively) in some way. Recently, three people in one day. I have been surprised, though, to find almost no one else “wearing their beliefs” except during protests, because it is so clear how much people really want to recognize their feelings in others, enough so that they will approach a stranger to say “I like your badge.”
Shenker-Osorio also talks about local action, action by just a few people, regular people becoming leaders by leading. I’m writing to you today to tell you about the next belief I am wearing. I have added a button. The text is I STAND WITH IMMIGRANTS, above a large inverted blue triangle.
Perhaps you know that Nazis forced the prisoners in the camps to wear identifying fabric triangles on their uniforms: pink/black for LGBTQ, yellow for Jews, red for political opponents, and blue for migrants. Hence, these buttons, which are part of a campaign to promote the wearing and understanding of the blue triangle. This campaign is being organized by the group Witness at the Border (www.witnessattheborder.org), which was founded by my husband, Josh Rubin. You can ask Amy Cohen about him; we all met at Tornillo, TX in 2018, when there was a migrant children's tent prison there.
WAB has been dedicated since 2018 to the cause of the right for humans to migrate and to be treated with dignity. Most recently, they were responsible for providing the data on ICE flights that was used in court to prove the timing of Trump’s illegal “deportation” flights to El Salvador.
Today, Josh is in Martinsburg, West Virginia. He has joined another member of the group, a man who decided to dress in a concentration camp uniform, wear a blue triangle, hold an explanatory sign and stand on the street in Chicago, where he lives. He bears witness to what our government is doing in our name.
This morning, they intend to stand together in front of the office of Rep. Riley Moore, who stood in front of the prisoners in CECOT and had his photo taken giving two thumbs up. They will read the list of prisoners in CECOT. Say their names. They hope to speak to the congressman. The press release of the event is copied below.
If you possibly can, I would ask you to read about the event and the broader Blue Triangle Solidarity campaign. Perhaps you would consider interviewing Josh when he comes home.
Thank you very much for your time and for your work.
Very Sincerely,
Melissa Bowen
“The Unknown Concentration Camp Prisoner” standing vigil to protest sending migrants to El Salvador
Media Advisory Contact:
April 21, 2025 Lee Goodman
press.witnessmpp@gmail.com
847-421-4056
Martinsburg, WV — Lee Goodman, a volunteer with the migrant advocacy group Witness at the Border, will stand outside the office of Rep. Riley Moore dressed in a replica of a World War II Nazi concentration camp prisoner uniform. The vigil takes place on the 80th anniversary of the liberation of the Sachsenhausen concentration camp.
Last week, during the Christian Holy Week and the Jewish Passover observance, Rep. Moore posted a photo of himself giving a “thumbs up” while standing in front of migrants imprisoned in a concentration camp in El Salvador.
“We should give serious consideration to the similarities between what our country is doing and what the Nazis did. Hitler did not start with death camps. He started with concentration camps, and he built on a history of persecution and government-endorsed pogroms,” said Mr. Goodman. “Horrible things happen in the El Salvador camp. El Salvador boasts that prisoners never get out alive.”
Goodman believes that the imprisonment in the U.S. of Americans of Japanese, Italian, and German ancestry during World War II, and the relocation of Native Americans in the 1800s, also points to the grievous error of putting migrants in concentration camps today. “Our government mostly called them relocation or assembly centers and internment camps. But the survivors today call them what they were – concentration camps,” said Goodman.
The uniform jacket that Goodman wears has a blue triangle sewn onto it. Migrants in Nazi camps had to wear blue triangles. Jews wore yellow triangles. LGBTQ people wore pink and black triangles.
Goodman is conducting his vigil in conjunction with Witness At The Border, an immigration advocacy group that was instrumental in bringing public pressure to close immigrant child detention camps during President Trump's first term and has continued to stand witness to the situation on the U.S./Mexico border.
Who: Witness At The Border, a national migrant advocacy group
What: “The Unknown Concentration Camp Prisoner” standing vigil to protest sending migrants to El Salvador
Where: Outside the District office of Rep. Riley Moore, 739 Winchester Avenue, Martinsburg, WV
When: Tuesday, April 22, 2025 11:00 am – 12:00 noon
That's how humble he was. God bless him always.
I loved Pope Francis.
Smarter and kinder
Pope’s official Easter sermon Sunday criticized hostility toward immigrants and international aid, a trademark of the Trump administration. He met VPOTUS on Sunday after having his deputy Cardinal Pietro Parolin and the Vatican Foreign Minister Archbishop Paul Gallagher meet with Vance on Saturday. → https://newrepublic.com/post/194178/pope-francis-jd-vance-lesson-immigrants-death
Thank you both for your insights. I always feel more empowered after listening to you and your guests, Anand. I see in my community the contagion courage!
Thank you both for this thoughtful conversation! Michael, I agree with your statement to Anand, "Thank you for making us all smarter!" And, Anand, I'm still chuckling and nodding my head over, "I'm concerned for his lower back!"
Anand, What you say at the end, keeping the arms open and resisting the people in power rather than their followers is interesting and important. But, what about resisting the EVIL that all of them are embracing; the leaders and followers? By this I mean de-personalize the evil. This is what the late Pope strove to do, right? He lived in the light as he could see it, not grabbing glory in his power, riches, etc.. but focusing on the living of the holy as he saw it (I am not Catholic BTW..) and this living his values/principles helped detach his statements and platforms from people to focus on ideas. Evil is not a person, place, or thing, it is a multifaceted idea that uses whoever is weak or open to being influenced. Your co-host, thought the trump&co thing was grand at one time, now that he sees it for what it is, perhaps he is not as enthusiastic about it! Beware of pining for better days of 'influence' Michael! Sometimes this shows through when you talk....! Evil will use whoever gives it a body to express it. Both of you bring valid points to think about. May we all follow our highest sense of good, and may it look more like the Pope's practice than trump&co.
Thank you both for wrestling the stories to get to insight and understanding.