My Migrant Valentine: Millions To Participate In 'To Immigrants With Love' Initiative

Today, on St. Valentine's Day, people across the country are embarking on a letter-writing/photo-sharing campaign to express their affection as a grand gesture of affection so apt on these day when we celebrate the tactics of love.

But this massive Valentine won't be for people's sweethearts but to the nation's immigrant communities — family members, friends, neighbors, classmates, co-workers — that are part of the American fabric at a time when it shows signs of fraying.

Two immigrant advocacy groups, Define American and I Am An Immigrant, are launching the campaign under the hashtag #ToImmigrantsWithLove. The effort comes at a time of ideological divisions in our country, with the nation seemingly divided into two camps: Those who embrace the virtues of diversity and those emboldened to demonize the concept with tacit endorsement of their political leaders.

The #ToImmigrantsWithLove campaign aims to be the antidote to the latter, encouraging Americans of all stripes to write "love letters" to immigrants through the website www.ToImmigrantsWithLove.com and then share their letters on social media using the hashtag #ToImmigrantsWithLove.

In Austin, the initiative couldn't have come at a better time as members of a global diaspora live in fear of deportation in the midst of bolstered enforcement by the U.S. Immigration Customs and Enforcement agency, which has been rounding up migrants since last week. So far, ICE confirmed Monday, it has ensnared 51 local residents to put them on the track for deportation.

Manuel Alvarado of Honduras was one of those caught up in the ICE raids occurring in the past few days throughout Austin, pulled over last Thursday morning as he headed to his landscaping work. Later that evening, his wife, Reyna Alvarado, was accompanied by her teenager daughter during a vigil staged in solemn protest of the crackdown.

As she stood outside the J.J. Pickle Federal Building, where her husband had been processed for deportation just hours before, she wondered aloud what the future held for her and her three children with the family patriarch netted in ICE's web, the tears running down her face evidence of her heartbreak.

“What do I do now?” Reyna Alvarado said in Spanish. "I had to go to school and tell my daughter that they’ve taken her father away."

There are many like her throughout Austin. Many anxious mothers, fathers and children in the grips of fear and uncertainty in need of a kind word or gesture of support from those grasping the impact the raids are having on actual families rather than those who can only see the immigration issue in the abstract through a prism of political ideology alone.

Local participants include members of the YWCA of Greater Austin. As it celebrates its 110th year of serving the community, the YWCA has grown and expanded its offerings in the course of that time. Self-described as "somewhere you can find comfort, feel safe, learn to cope and, hopefully, heal," the YWCA seemed destined to participate in a campaign placing currency on inclusiveness.

"Immigrants in Austin are struck by fear," the organization's executive director, Angela-Jo Touza-Medina, wrote in a recent editorial for members. "As we witness all levels of government attack this vulnerable community, the YWCA has a message: We have your back. We always have."

Touza-Medina noted the YWCA she now heads traces its own origins as rooted in diversity. In March 1920, the YWCA partnered with the City of Austin to open the Austin International Institute at 408 Nueces St., she explained, in the heart of one of Austin’s principal Mexican neighborhoods.

Despite its exponential growth since those early days and an ever-expanding array of programs, the YWCA's mission has remain unchanged, its earliest mission described as one designed to "promote a better understanding between native and foreign-born people and to help the foreign-born become adjusted to America and its institutions."

Jose Antonio Vargas, founder and CEO of Define American, said no better time in our history has emerged than today to voice support for the nation's immigrants.

“There’s never been a more important time in modern U.S. history to stand in solidarity with immigrants across our country,” said Vargas, a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist. “This campaign comes at a crucial time not only for millions of immigrants who call America home but for the millions of American citizens and permanent residents whose lives are connected to ours. We are an immigrant nation and we love our immigrants. Let’s show it.”

Celebrities and elected officials from across the country participating in #ToImmigrantsWithLove include Constance Wu, Regina Spektor, Amy Schumer, America Ferrera, Reza Aslan, Russell Simmons, Chef Jose Andres and California State Sen. Kevin de León.

In a time of uncertainty and renewed fear given the recent crackdowns nationwide directed from the highest levels of government, the #ToImmigrantsWithLove campaign seeks to "...flood the Internet with messages of love and support for new Americans and those whose ancestors immigrated to the United States long ago from elsewhere," organizers wrote.

Comedian, actress and producer Cristela Alonzo credits her experiences growing up as a U.S. citizen child of an undocumented mother with inspiring her to participate in the #ToImmigrantsWithLove campaign.

“I wouldn’t be here without the journey of an immigrant,” said Alonzo, whose new Netflix special “Lower Classy” includes riffs on the immigrant experience. “I am with you and will fight for you to have the same rights we all have.”

For more information, visit social media forums using the hashtag #ToImmigrantsWithLove, or visit www.ToImmigrantsWithLove.com.

>>> Image above courtesy of FWD.us, photos by Tony Cantú