The Mormon Church — officially the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (LDS) — is quietly welcoming thousands of migrants sent to Utah from overcrowded Denver, Colorado, despite public protests by state and local elected officials.
Utah has suffered under the arrival of thousands of cast-off border crossers sent its way by officials in Denver, but even as the state has no resources for migrants, the Mormon Church is quietly welcoming them, causing the public burden to magnify.
Republican Gov. Spencer Cox voiced his outrage in June after he said he just “learned” that Denver had been sending thousands of border crossers to Utah.
“We recently learned that the Democrat mayor of Denver has been sending illegal immigrants to Utah without proper notification or approval,” Cox said on X. “This is completely unacceptable and follows on the failed catch-and-release policy of the Biden administration.”
Cox added, “All 50 states, including Utah, are now border states due to the failed immigration policies of President Biden and Congress. Once again we call on the Biden administration and Congress to solve this crisis.”
We recently learned that the Democrat mayor of Denver has been sending illegal immigrants to Utah without proper notification or approval. This is completely unacceptable and follows on the failed catch-and-release policy of the Biden administration. Every state has received… https://t.co/pL4pShMTn2
— Utah Gov. Spencer J. Cox (@GovCox) June 14, 2024
The issue has grown so vexing to Utah officials that Cox’s administration has begun sending out flyers printed in Spanish to warn illegals not to come to Utah because there are no free programs for them to take advantage of.
“There is no space available in shelters,” the flyers state. “Food banks and other basic needs services are at capacity. If you do not have a secure and stable connection or family in Utah, consider another state to settle in the US.”
Despite all the proclamations from elected officials that Utah is not a “sanctuary state,” the Mormon Church is undermining the lack of official sanctuary status by using its own vast resources to welcome illegals into the state by the thousands and working with non-profits and non-governmental organizations to cater to the migrants.
The church has been outspoken in support of left-wing immmigration policies and has, for instance, announced support for the Utah Compact, which demands federal reform of policy with an eye toward keeping families together and extending “compassion” to migrants, the Salt Lake Tribune reported.
The church has also directed meeting houses to serve as migrant centers and shifted an unreported amount of church funding to the care of illegals.
LDS officials have been issuing statements in support of illegal immigrants for years, as well. As far back as 2018, the church criticized federal policies that tend to remove children from their parents when families illegally cross the border.
In 2021, the LDS also stepped up its services for illegals as part of its “Immigrant Services Initiative.”
So, while the state government races to assure voters that Utah is not a sanctuary state, the most powerful institution in the state is working at cross purposes with official proclamations, nullifying the politicians’ claims that illegals have no place in Utah.
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