The Synod of the Southwest overtures the 217th General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) to:

1. Recognize that our present national immigration policies are not working effectively along our southern border with Mexico. Rather than stemming the tide of illegal immigration, the policies have had the unintended consequences of increasing deaths in the desert, the perpetuation of illegal status of whole groups of persons within our borders, and a huge challenge to all of our legal, medical, social, and economic systems.

2. Express our sincere appreciation and respect for Archbishop Roger Mahony and the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Los Angeles for their leadership and strong commitment to support humanitarian aid to immigrants in Christ’s name even if such compassion should bring conflict with secular law;

3. Urge all our synods, presbyteries, and congregations to discover other communities of faith and people of conscience to enter into intentional dialogue with them to develop ways to promote humane reform of national immigration laws. Such dialogue should be based upon

a. a theological confession that all of us, our institutions and laws, fall short of the intentions of God, and need to be constantly reviewed and reformed;

b. biblical affirmation that God’s bias for the powerless, the stranger, the poor and hungry compel us as disciples to form our legal processes so that all persons are cared for as beloved children of God;

c. our conviction as citizens that border security is important, our country needs to have clear, just, and constitutional immigration laws and policy;

d. the belief that just immigration laws, which protect human life, support the integrity of families, are possible, and can establish legal guest worker programs that benefit both the U.S. economy and worker’s families, and address the root causes of illegal immigration; and

e. an increasingly larger view that immigration is not just a problem along our southern border, but is global and historic in its dimensions, and calls for systemic solutions.

1. Reaffirm the 216th General Assembly (2004)’s "Resolution Calling for a Comprehensive Legalization Program for Immigrants Living and Working in the U.S."

2. Affirm that our denomination, mindful of the current realities and threats to our belief system, not sway from our solidarity with, and pledge of service to, all of our brothers and sisters regardless of their race, creed, color, nationality, or residency status.

3. Affirm those Presbyterian congregations and presbyteries that are already standing alongside immigrants and are actively engaged in acts of compassion, empowerment, and advocacy.

4. Challenge each Presbyterian congregation and presbytery to embrace a comprehensive approach to "advocacy and welcome" for immigrants that includes, at the very minimum

a. compassionate responses to immediate human needs;

b. creative empowerment of immigrants and courageous advocacy for effective and systemic policy changes, such as a plan for undocumented migrants to achieve legal status;

c. a guest worker program with a path to permanent residency;

d. transparent access to visas to unify families;

e. a call for increased wages for workers of United States-owned companies in other countries;

f. a call for greater economic development in poor countries to decrease the economic desperation, which forces the division of families and migration.

5. Affirm the right of each congregation, presbytery, and our denomination as a whole, to speak out clearly and constantly to the media and others regarding the PC(USA)’s call to serve all those in need and to stand with the oppressed, our refusal to be deferred from this mandate, and our willingness to break laws that forbid us to live out our responsibilities to God and to our brothers and sisters who do not have U.S. residency documents.

6. Encourage Presbyterian legislators serving in the House and Senate to actively work across party lines to defeat this proposed legislation while actively working across party lines to achieve more amicable legislation that resolves the conflicts surrounding "immigration policy issues.

7. Affirm the PC(USA)’s commitment to providing sanctuary to anyone in need of safe space, food, or shelter.

8. Advocate these positions through the Washington Office of the PC(USA) and the Office of the Stated Clerk, including amicus curiae briefs, if necessary.

9. Direct the General Assembly Council, through its National Ministries Division, to create and facilitate a network of "immigrant welcome" churches that agree with the affirmations of this overture.

10. Reaffirm that we must find ways to ensure that "marginalized persons" in our society, citizen or not, are not pitted against each other.

11. Reaffirm that the words "justice for all" within our country’s Pledge of Allegiance do not represent an either/or proposition.

12. Reaffirm that we Presbyterians take the positions stated within this overture because it is right in God’s eyes, we can trace our denomination’s faith heritage back to its roots in another land and, for the vast majority of us, we can also trace our family heritage back to roots in another land, making all of us immigrants in one form or another.