Remembrance organizers seek to prevent another Postville

A prayer vigil to commemorate the May 12, 2008 immigration raid in Postville will be held at 4 p.m. today at St. Bridget's Church in Postville. Organizers believe a number of religious and social justice organizations throughout the nation will stop today and remember what happened in Postville.

A year ago today, Sister Mary McCauley, pastoral administrator for the region that includes St. Bridget’s Catholic Church in Postville, was greeted by a parishioner with the following words: “Sister, a terrible thing has happened to our town.”

At the time, according to McCauley, she didn’t fully appreciate how true the parishioner’s words would turn out to be.

“A terrible thing did happen to the town of Postville. A terrible thing has happened to our Hispanic brothers and sisters. And I add that a terrible thing has happened to our country,” McCauley said by phone on Monday.

For these reasons, she said, on the one-year anniversary of the massive immigration raid at the Agriprocessors plant in Postville, the St. Bridget’s Response Team and numerous other organizations are hoping to create awareness and solidarity across the country.

The “Day of Remembrance” in Postville began at 10 a.m. — the time the immigration raid began — with the ringing of church bells and the blowing of the shofar, a Jewish horn. Bells toll 389 times at St. Paul Lutheran Church in Postville, once for each worker detained in the raid.

Organizers have invited concerned groups throughout the nation to observe a moment of silence or otherwise mark this moment that changed so many lives one year ago.

Because this one-year anniversary coincides with the Jewish observance of Lag Ba’Omer, that religious community will conduct its annual parade of celebration beginning at 11 a.m. The holiday commemorates the end of a plague that claimed the lives of many Jewish scholars, and is also the anniversary of a 2nd century rabbi’s death. Jewish communities remember the importance of loving others, and also spend time communing with nature on this date.

The Postville Response Coalition and other interested groups will host a joint press conference at 1:30 p.m. It is believed that Joseph Sarachek, bankruptcy trustee for Agriprocessors, may make a statement regarding the plant at that time.

Throughout the day art depicting the people and the circumstance of Postville will be on display.

In late afternoon, after school has been dismissed, participants will once again gather at St. Bridget’s Catholic Church for a vigil and “solidarity walk” to the meatpacking plant on the edge of town. The vigil, which is expected to be conducted by Lutheran and Catholic bishops as well as a rabbi, will begin at 4 p.m. and last roughly one hour.

The Rev. Steven L. Ullestad, bishop of the ELCA Northeastern Iowa Synod, Waverly, plans to speak about the trauma and grief of Postville’s Jewish and Christian communities in the aftermath of the raids.

“Our children, the children of all faiths and from all parts of the world, have experienced terror in a way that others outside of this community cannot imagine,” the bishop’s reflection states.

When the walk is complete, residents have planned a community dinner.

“It is our conviction that we cannot allow what happened in Postville to happen in any other town,” McCauley said. “We have to seek immigration reform. Our focus is on family unity, just legal practices and an end to raids.”

The Postville raid ended with nearly 400 meatpacking workers, most from either Guatemala or Mexico, in government custody. While the plea agreements signed by those detained were done swiftly and efficiently, the problems left behind in tiny Postville have lingered and grown.

Paul Rael, Hispanic lay minister for St. Bridget’s, has worked closely with the families directly impacted by the raid.

“For myself and the Response Team the work has changed very, very little since week one after the raid,” Rael said.

“It is hard for us to face every single day, because every single day brings in a new challenge. Every day we must face families that, obviously, are not permitted to work and are not permitted to leave the community.”

Although the numbers have decreased, there are still several individuals in the Postville community who exist only by charity. The current list includes 28 women outfitted with ankle tracking devices and 12 juveniles. Originally detained in the May 2008 immigration raid, most of these individuals were released back into the community on humanitarian grounds.

In addition, there are 41 former plant workers who are slated to serve as prosecution witnesses in the federal cases against plant management. While these witnesses are permitted to work, there is very little work to be found in beleagered Postville.

During the first four to six months following the raid, St. Bridget’s was expending roughly $80,000 per month to maintain the families left behind. Rael said he doesn’t have a firm figure that is being expended currently by the church, but that the cost remains “significant.”

The program and prayers being used by the Postville community for today’s vigil have been posted online for use by other communities who also wish to commemorate the anniversary.