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The foreigner residing among you must be treated as your native-born. Love them as yourself, for you were foreigners in Egypt. I am the Lord your God (Leviticus 19:34, NIV).
I live in a community that now has thousands of recent immigrants from Haiti. Estimates range from 10 to 20 thousand in the past few years and thousands more in the next few years.
Listening to podcasts, reading blog posts, and having conversations with citizens of the city, I hear lots of comments. Some are rumors, and others are probably factual. This Interruption is not to discuss the benefits or difficulties of immigration, just my personal experience.
When I say, “Haitians living with us,” I literally mean Haitians living with my wife and me. Willie and his wife Chloe have been staying in our house for seven months. Below are a few observations. . .
- Willie has two master’s degrees from an American university in Puerto Rico. He is working on his accreditation for civil engineering in Ohio.
- Willie speaks four languages (Creole, Spanish, English, and French), and his wife studies daily to learn English.
- Willie works 6 a.m. to 5 p.m., while Chloe works 9 p.m. to 4 a.m. I think they see each other on weekends!
- They have joined the church at the local Salvation Army, and I see them dressed in a suit and a dress going to service every Sunday. Willie also carries his guitar since he is on the church’s worship team.
One of the criticisms of Haitians living among us is their driving skills—or lack thereof. Watching the Haitians living with my wife and me, I’ve observed that Willie drives well, and Chloe just received her driver’s license.
They park in our driveway, on a piece of concrete off-centered from our garage door. I asked Willie not to drive in the grass when leaving—which means his car must go forward and then backward—and with a skilled driver, the car can then be backed down the driveway without driving on the grass.
Chloe, with her new driver’s license, takes a bit longer.
Recently my wife noticed Chloe getting into her car to begin the process of driving forward and backing up. My wife went to take a shower, and when she returned downstairs, Chloe was still backing up and driving forward in the same spot.
HHHHMMMHHM!
In a recent conversation with Willie, he said, “We both want to speak excellent English, become citizens, and own a house. We are saving all our money for our new home and think we can buy one in two years.”
The United States should have strong border policies. Criminals are now pouring across our borders, and with the influx of immigrants, healthcare, schools, and government services are stretched to the limit.
I’m not in a role to make the big-picture political decisions. But my wife and I can help one Haitian couple—the Haitians living with us.