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Florida Nuns Taught Me To Embrace Immigrants and Reject the Logic of Babylon

A person holds a sign reading "We are the sun of Florida, stop the law SB 1718" during a Solidarity Rally to condemn Florida Governor Ron DeSantis' attacks on immigrants through legislation such as SB 1718, outside City Hall in Los Angeles, Calif., June 28, 2023. Reuters/Mike Blake.

During the presidential debate in September, then-Republican candidate and now President-elect Donald J. Trump propagated a Facebook rumor that Haitian immigrants in Ohio were stealing neighbors’ pets and eating them. While the rumor has since been debunked, anti-immigrant rhetoric like this makes it easier for lawmakers to drum up support for laws such as Florida’s SB 1718, a law that is meant to address illegal immigration.

When Florida’s Republican governor, Ron DeSantis, signed SB 1718 last year, he declared it “the strongest legislation against illegal immigration anywhere in the country.” When the bill was first proposed, it included some particularly cruel policies that would discourage immigrants from seeking access to basic services such as rides to church or medical care.

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