LETTER FROM OUR CEO: “A Call To Defend Our Most Vulnerable

The holiday season is usually a time for gratitude, joy, reflection and rest.  But currently, I find myself troubled with the direction our country is headed. Especially when that direction seems to impact the people who are the most vulnerable in society . The recent failed 40-day government shutdown exposed the strains local organizations are facing daily while our elected leaders leverage the lives of the poor, the unhoused, and other marginalized communities into props for political theater. Operation Restoration like so many other nonprofits, food banks, housing providers and community-based organizations ended up absorbing the fallout. 

We are already seeing the impacts of the National Guard being deployed and the surge in ICE activity across Louisiana, including right here in New Orleans. And we have to be clear about what’s true: immigration status is a civil matter, not a criminal one. The detention of undocumented people is an extension of mass incarceration. This year Louisiana passed Act 399, a law that pushes to further criminalize interactions tied to ICE. 

These moves carry dangerous implications, especially when we’re living in a reality where more and more Black and Brown children have gone missing within the legal system. Just this month, I learned of a 16-year-old who was transported across state lines due to an arrest warrant issued without parental consent or notification. That should stop all of us in our tracks. 

As Justice Sotomayor stated in her recent dissent, the government has already engaged in unlawful arrests based solely on factors such as “apparent race or ethnicity,” speaking English with an accent, or the type of job they worked. Her words make clear what communities on the ground already know: when state and federal power expands without oversight, it is Black, Brown, immigrant, and low-income communities who are targeted first and harmed most.

As we gather with loved ones this Thanksgiving, I urge you to stay mindful of the power government yields and the lives impacted by it. True safety is created when people have what they need. We know what happens when broad state power is unleashed without accountability. The destruction these laws enable is measurable, visible, and deeply felt on the ground.

In Solidarity,

Syrita Steib

Founder, President & CEO

Operation Restoration