Editor’s Notes
Feliz día de las madres
by Fr. Dick Bayuk, c.pp.s., Editor
Mother’s Day is celebrated in the U.S. (and in over 75 other countries) on
the second Sunday of May. Additionally, many countries observe this spe-
cial day on March 8 th in conjunction with International Women’s Day and
a number of others on March 21 st , the Spring Equinox. Three countries cel-
ebrate it on feast days of Mary: Slovenia, March 25 th (Annunciation); Costa
Rica, August 15 th (Assumption); and Panama, December 8 th (Immaculate
Conception). Needless to say, greeting card companies and florists like
Mother’s Day.
As we honor and remember our mothers, and observe this day in our
own way, may we also take a moment to reflect on mothers who have
lost children to gun violence, mothers who huddle in refugee camps with
their small children or who flee with them from bombs and artillery fire.
Remember those mothers living in poverty in our country who do not
have adequate health care, mothers who work two jobs and still cannot
afford to feed their children without help, and those in this country and
around the world who endure oppression, job discrimination, sexual ha-
rassment, and violence—because they are women. The reality of mother-
hood (in its many manifestations) is not always the stuff of greeting cards.
Mexico celebrates Mother’s Day on May 10 th , so on that day I invite
you to remember Maribel Trujillo. She is a 42-year-old mother of four
American children from Fairfield, Ohio, who never committed any crime
in the 15 years she lived in the U.S., but was been deported to Mexico in
mid-April. Her removal accomplished nothing, other than to divide her
family and leave four U.S.-citizen children, the youngest just three years
old, effectively motherless. (I want to emphasize also that she is one of
many to whom this has been done.)
May 10th is also Mother’s Day in El Salvador, so perhaps it is appropri-
ate to remember all those mothers (with their children) from that country
that have been held in detention for months in the U.S. Their deportations
(back to the violence and abuse—often gender- and sexual-based—that
they fled from) are now being accelerated. On the day that I am writing
this, three families are scheduled for deportation, including a 19-year-old
and her small child.
Last year, the Kansas City Province members and Companions approved
and published a Corporate Stance for Comprehensive Reform of the
Immigration System in the U.S. The document states in part: “We affirm
the rights of all immigrants to be treated with dignity and respect. We call
on all government leaders to work together to establish compassionate and
comprehensive immigration reform legislation. This legislation should:
continued on page 7
2 • The New Wine Press • May 2017