"Voices of the Voiceless," a collaborative project

Sr. Susan Merrie and Sr. Evelyn review transcriptions.

When we dream alone, it is only a dream; when we dream together, reality begins.
This Brazilian proverb aptly describes a large, collaborative effort recently initiated by Path to Justice, a subcommittee of the Tri-diocesan Sisters Leadership Conference comprised of many women religious in this area. Encouraged by the United States Bishops’ Statement on Comprehensive Immigration Reform, their dream is to collect and share the stories of immigrants living in Pittsburgh in a documentary film. Stories of documented immigrants who came legally into the country and stories of those undocumented people who could not obtain necessary papers; also stories of those who have been here for years and stories of those who have recently entered the country will be included in this educational film which will be used with a wide range of people including, but not limited to: voters, legislators, church people, schools, universities, and health care professionals. People need to hear the true stories of immigrants whose lives are disrupted and defaced by the anti-immigrant atmosphere rampant today in this country, so that myths and misinformation will be dispelled, truth will supplant propaganda, a new respect for the contributions that immigrants make to our work force will be forged, and the inherent dignity and worth of people will be recognized.

For this purpose, Sister Susan English, OSB, who serves as the secretary of Path to Justice, Sister Janice Vanderneck, CSJ, a long-time friend and supporter of the Latino Community, and other religious sisters involved in Path have invited both professionals and immigrant people, men and women, to be involved in this complex process. Lynn Cullen, a well known radio personality and talk show hostess, volunteered to interview 20 or more people from the immigrant community between October and December, 2010. Lynn can be seen on her popular internet program, The Lynn Cullen Show Monday –Friday at 10:00 a.m. Dr. Dennis Woytec, a professor at Duquesne University who has done video work for Bishop David A. Zubik, is filming the production pro bono. Many of the interviewees are members of St. Regis or St. Benedict the Moor Parish.

During the interview process, Lynn Cullen asked the interviewees questions concerning their home lands, why they came here, how it has affected their families and their emotional and physical well being, what they have contributed to this country, what has been most difficult for them here and why they stay. Most of the stories are painful. Some are stories of human triumph in the face of grave difficulty and suffering. When asked what she has learned from these stories, Lynn commented:

I have learned that their courage is born of desperation. Time and again they tell us that there is no legal way for them to come to this country. The American government doesn’t give visas to people who are poor. The people I have interviewed tell me their only recourse to escape the hopelessness of their lowly station in their own countries is to literally risk their lives to come here to live as fugitives. Why do they do it? To a man and woman, the answer is the same: so that their children will have a chance at a good life, an education, everything they did not have. The driving force is love for their children.

In order to protect the identity of the undocumented, Dennis Woytek blocked out portions of their faces and often focused on their hands and eyes in a way that emphasized the spoken words of people often called “illegal aliens” a term to which Lynn now has a strong reaction:

Being involved in this project has changed my perspective about the people Americans refer to as “illegal aliens.” What a dehumanizing and ugly term that is to my ears now.

When asked to comment on his involvement in this project, Dennis replied:

If people are able to see the drive, talent, and loving families that I have experienced in the many interviews, you can see how much these immigrants can bring to our nation. Much like most of our family immigration stories, our nation still is a melting pot of cultures that make us not separate, but united under the many cultures that make up our country.

In order to make the script writing easier, several people volunteered to transcribe the videos to hard copy. This involved many hours of listening and listening again to put these powerful, deeply moving stories into print. These volunteers include Irma Wolfson, originally from Puerto Rico and a volunteer with the Benedictines, Sister Evelyn Dettling, OSB, and Sister Jeanette Bussen, CSJ. Their comments about the privilege of being involved in this project resonate with Lynn Cullen’s. They speak of being humbled by the determination, goodness, and hard work of the immigrants, both those who are documented and those who are not. Also, they feel honored to be part of a project that will include essential voices in the national debate about immigration reform which the American Bishops deem critical. In their statement on Comprehensive Immigration Reform the American Catholic Bishops say:

Since our nation’s immigration policy does impact the basic dignity and life of the human person, it needs to be reformed urgently to uphold human dignity and to protect human life. On behalf of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, we will continue towork with Congress and the President to enact comprehensive immigration reform legislation consistent with these principles. In the end, our immigration laws should be just and humane and reflect the values—fairness, opportunity, and compassion—upon which our nation, a nation of immigrants, was built.

www.usccb.org/bishops/immigrationreform.shtml

Because of the collaborative efforts of many, the dream of an educational film, intended to lift up the voices and stories of those people whose lives are so unjustly impacted by our immigration policies, is on the way to becoming reality in late spring or early summer. When the film is released there will be a gala premier showing open to the public. Information will be provided about this event and the distribution of the film in the spring. Every effort will be made to ensure that these voices, most often silenced, will be heard by a wide and varied public in order to promote more humane immigration policies which protect the life and dignity of all of our sisters and brothers.

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