the Web Editors

This is not the first time Congregational United Church of Christ has offered their church as sanctuary to undocumented immigrants. Minerva Garcia took sanctuary in the church from June 28 2017 to Oct. 2 2017 A federal judge in Texas vacated her deportation order leading her to claim sanctuary. Garcia came to the U.S. in the 1990s so her son, who is blind, could have more opportunities. She came to the U.S. undocumented because it was too expensive and too time consuming to accommodate her son’s needs while traveling, according to the Triad City Beat. She said her hometown in Mexico was violent because of drug cartels, also propelling her to leave.

The operation would go after people who have been identified as targets for deportation, including those who have been served with final deportation orders and those with criminal histories, the source said. The number could tick up if officers come across other undocumented immigrants in the course of their actions and make what are known as collateral arrests.

While long quietly politically engaged, many at the school have taken on a noticeably more public stance toward actions from the Trump administration. 

An ICE officer told the Daily Camera that Jurado’s detainment is not related to Encalada Latorre’s immigration status or her taking sanctuary. But some, including Encalada Latorre and Janette Vizguerra, a prominent immigrant rights leader who was previously in sanctuary, believe that this is a tactic to put pressure on Latorre to leave sanctuary.

4. The Oligarchs

A new interactive investigation from Al Jazeera uncovers a dirty money trail in Ukraine.

5. Your City Has a Gender, and It’s Male

Why city designers are increasingly thinking about the female perspective.

Senator Ed Markey (D-MA), along with the support 40 co-sponsors, have amassed the 30 votes necessary to seek to reverse the net neutrality repeal through the Congressional Review Act. 

“In the midst of the critical national conversation now taking place on issues of sexual harassment and assault, this survey shows that young Americans in their teens and early twenties see serious negative consequences flowing from traditional depictions of masculinity,” Robert P. Jones, CEO of PRRI, said. “Young women, in particular, are worried that these expectations carry within them the seeds of sexually aggressive or even violent behavior.”

The night belonged to Oprah.

2. From Evangelicals to Witches: How Religion Shaped 2017

Vox highlights four major religious trends, shifts, and changes in 2017, and ends with a little dose of optimism for 2018.

3. Real Gratitude Shouldn’t Be Easy: On ‘It’s a Wonderful Life’

“At our frequent worst, gratitude isn’t something we feel so much as calculate, tallying our advantages to weigh against the miseries of others. In the privacy of our own minds, our gratitude can bear a family resemblance to schadenfreude—a secret reassurance that others will always have it worse.”