Sanctuary and Asylum SANCTUARY and ASYLUM A Social and Political History Linda Rabben A Capell Family Book University of Washington Press Seattle & London The Capell Family Endowed Book Fund supports the publication of books that deepen the understanding of social justice through historical, cultural, and environmental studies. © 2016 by Linda Rabben Printed and bound in the United States of America Design: Dustin Kilgore Typeset in Malabar, a typeface designed by Dan Reynolds 20 19 18 17 16 5 4 3 2 1 All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopy, recording, or any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher. Manufactured in the United States of America Frontispiece: South China Sea: Crewmen of the amphibious cargo ship USS Durham (LKA-114) take Vietnamese refugees aboard a small craft, April 1975. Photographer unknown. Courtesy of the National Archives and Records Administration and Wikimedia Commons. UniveRsity of Washington PRess www.washington.edu/uwpress Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Names: Rabben, Linda, 1947– author. Title: Sanctuary and asylum : a social and political history / Linda Rabben. Description: Seattle : University of Washington Press, 2016. | Includes bibliographical references and index. Identifiers: LCCn 2016012898| isbn 9780295999128 (hardcover : alk. paper) | isbn 9780295999135 (pbk. : alk. paper) Subjects: LCsh: Asylum, Right of—History. | Asylum, Right of. | Refugees. Classification: LCC K3268.3 .R335 2016 | ddC 342.08/3—dc23 LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2016012898 The paper used in this publication is acid-free and meets the minimum requirements of American National Standard for Information Sciences—Permanence of Paper for Printed Library Materials, ansi Z39.48–1984.∞ In memory of Miep Gies (1909–2010), Howard Zinn (1922–2010), Nicholas Winton (1909–2015), and thousands of other sanctuarians; and with thanks to JE, for giving me shelter the neW CoLossUs Not like the brazen giant of Greek fame, With conquering limbs astride from land to land; Here at our sea-washed, sunset gates shall stand A mighty woman with a torch, whose flame Is the imprisoned lightning, and her name Mother of Exiles. From her beacon-hand Glows world-wide welcome; her mild eyes command The air-bridged harbor that twin cities frame. “Keep, ancient lands, your storied pomp!” cries she With silent lips. “Give me your tired, your poor, Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free, The wretched refuse of your teeming shore. Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me, I lift my lamp beside the golden door!” —Emma Lazarus, 1883 Contents aCKnoWLedgments xi Introduction 1 1. Asylum and Sanctuary Seekers’ Stories 9 2. Sanctuary’s Beginnings 27 3. A Thousand Years of Medieval Sanctuary 39 4. From Religious Sanctuary to Secular Asylum 55 5. Nineteenth-Century Sanctuary outside the Law 67 6. The Pleasures of Holocaust Rescue 95 7. The Twentieth-Century Heyday of Asylum 122 8. Asylum Now in Canada, Australia, and the United Kingdom 148 9. Asylum Now in Europe and Beyond 175 10. The Golden Door Ajar: US Asylum Policy 197 11. Contemporary Sanctuary Movements 218 12. The News from Tucson 244 Afterword: Does Asylum Have a Future? 266 aPPendix 281 notes 285 RefeRenCes 295 index 319 Illustrations follow page 82 Acknowledgments Many people in several countries gave me help—and refuge— from 2006 to 2015, as I researched and wrote Sanctuary and Asylum and its predecessor, Give Refuge to the Stranger. At home in the sanctuary city of Takoma Park, Maryland, Rev. Phil Wheaton and Michael McConnell gave me informative interviews about their work for the 1980s Sanctuary Movement. Zelda Bell pro- vided practical assistance that made it possible for me to do research in the United Kingdom and France, and Alice Haddix helped arrange my 2008 visit to Tucson. In Tucson, sanctuarians Reverend Ricardo Elford, Reverend John Fife, John Heid, Paul Barby, the Community of Christ in the Desert, Lois Martin, Sarah Roberts, Frederick Neidhardt, Rev. Jim Wiltbank, Rev. Alison Harrington, the Samaritans, Rosemary and Bill Hallinan, Rev. Robin Hoover, Mike Humphrey, John Miles, Sebastian Quinac, Rachel Wilson, Geoff Boyce, and others kindly gave me interviews in 2008 and 2014. Abby Root and Lauren Raine offered hospitality and a listening ear. Linda Green, Kathryn Rodriguez, Sarah Launius, Kent Walker, and Jean Boucher helped in other ways. Rosa Robles Loreto, in sanctuary at Southside Presbyterian Church, and Francisco Perez Cordova, in sanctuary at Saint Francis in the Foothills United Method- ist Church, graciously consented to be interviewed in November 2014. Nicole Kligerman introduced me to the New Sanctuary Movement of Philadelphia. In El Paso, Joe Heyman was tremendously helpful during my visit in 2010; afterward he read chapter 2, made useful suggestions for changes, and became a friend. Also in El Paso and environs, sanctuarians Kathleen Erickson, Delia Gomez, Fernando xi xii aCKnoWLedgments Garcia, Ruben Garcia, and Rev. Peter Hinde gave inspiring interviews that increased my understanding of old and new sanctuary movements. In Juarez, Mexico, Sr. Betty Campbell and Sr. Mary Alice shared their experiences with me. In Saint Paul, Minnesota, the matchless Nelly Trocmé Hewett shared her encyclopedic knowledge of her parents André and Magda Trocmé, Le Chambon-sur-Lignon, France, and the surrounding region; she also read chapter 6 and corrected many errors, small and large. In Le Chambon-sur-Lignon, Annik Flaud and Gérard Bollon gra- ciously provided a great deal of information in a very short time. Thanks also to John Graney, MD, who drove me to Le Chambon with dizzying proficiency along the winding back roads of the Haute Loire. I am grateful to interviewees “Mary” and “Pierre,” who requested anonymity. They and other asylum seekers whose stories are told in chapter 1 are heroes whose courage and persistence continue to inspire me. In Britain, Mahamad Al-Shagra, Rev. John Arnold, Sally Daghlian, Bob Deffee, Emma Ginn, Jim Gomersall, Eveline Louden, Roger Norris, Dele Olawanle, Kate Roberts, Jan Shaw, Debora Singer, Ahlam Souidi, Chris Williams, and Jean Wilson gave me interviews and inspiration. Conor Gearty was a gracious and encouraging host at London School of Economics’ Center for the Study of Human Rights, where I was a visiting fellow in 2007–2008. My colleague at CSHR, Michael Welch, was helpful to me in London and after. The Scottish Refugee Council in Glasgow gave me shelter for a week in 2008 and taught me much about integration. Thanks also to Gary Christie, Celia Clarke, Jona- than Cox, Rev. Moyna McGlynn, Rev. Nicholas Sagovsky, and Jeremy Seabrook, who were especially encouraging. Zoe Stevens and Rev. Patrick Wright kindly facilitated visits to detention centers. Moyra Ashford, Sue Branford, Sue and Patrick Cunningham, John and Eliz- abeth Nurser, Jan Rocha, Patti Whaley, and Rob Wheeler provided indispensable hospitality and friendship over the years. In the Netherlands a volunteer social worker, several asylum seek- ers, Patricia Brunklaus, and Esther van den Broek of the Dutch Refu- gee Council in Tilburg, Tycho van Lummel of the Netherlands Justice Ministry Migration Directorate, and residents of Noelhuis (Catholic aCKnoWLedgments xiii Worker house) of Amsterdam were kind enough to meet with me in 2014. I am especially grateful to Veerle Slegers and her family for their generous hospitality. Bedankt! Librarians and archivists, such as Wendy Chmielewski, curator of the Swarthmore College Peace Collection, and Patricia Chapin O’Donnell of Swarthmore College Friends Historical Library; Josef Keith and Lisa McQuillen of Friends House Library, London; Clem- ent Ho, international studies librarian at American University; and Steve Lafalce, reference librarian at Washington College of Law’s Pence Library, gave me valuable assistance. Thanks also to employers and colleagues who gave practical help as I was writing Give Refuge to the Stranger: Juan Mendez, the late Robert Goodland, Marie Marr Jack- son, and Virginia Bouvier, who made me aware of Colombian peace communities. Several experts were kind enough to steer me through the shoals of asylum policies and practices: Celia Clarke of BID, Steve Symonds of Amnesty International UK, Prof. Wendy Chan of Simon Fraser University, Grant Mitchell, director of the International Detention Coalition, Lucy Bowring, MENA coordinator of the International Detention Coalition, and Prof. Claudia Tazreiter of University of New South Wales, Australia, reviewed parts of chapters 8 and 11 and made helpful comments. Prof. Jayesh Rathod of Washington College of Law commented on chapter 10. Michael Matza of the Philadelphia Inquirer gave me indispensable help with the story of Tiombe Carlos, told in chapter 1. Imam Daoud Nassimi and Prof. Steven Caton graciously provided information about sanctuary in Islam. My relationship with the University of Washington Press goes back to 1998, when they published the first US edition of my book on Bra- zilian indigenous movements, Unnatural Selection. Over the years my editors there have consistently provided moral support and helpful advice. My heartfelt thanks go to them and to anonymous readers who made constructive suggestions for changes. I am grateful to copyright holders who gave me permission to reproduce their work: Australian Human Rights Commission, Lydia Besong, Angie Morton, Rutgers University Press, United Nations Archives, and UNICEF. xiv aCKnoWLedgments Chai was my faithful research assistant. John Eckenrode’s gener- osity, encouragement, and example have made all the difference to my life and work. If I have forgotten anyone who helped, I beg pardon. The mis- takes in this book are my own, and I ask forgiveness for them, too. Sanctuary and Asylum Introduction Fleeing the threat of genital mutilation, seventeen-year-old Fauziya Kassindja left her home in the West African country of Togo in late 1994. Unlike many girls in her ethnic group, she had avoided “cutting” because her father did not approve of the practice.