Wrote this in June 2009 for Dr. Reyes' "Pan Dulce Blog" while working at Buckner International (I no longer work for Buckner but deeply admire their work in adoption/foster care and have made some edits from original post):
When I think of Social Justice, immediately my heart begins to beat faster and my blood begins to boil, as it is such an important focus of who I am and what I do. Growing up a as a Hispanic female in this country, from a low-income home and immigrant family, I have experienced and seen social injustice in many facets. It is because of what God has allowed me to survive that I believe He has called me to minister to the least of these. Today, as an advocate of orphans and at-risk children I will speak to the Social Justice as it relates to these children.
Social Justice can be categorized in so many aspects, such as domestic violence, poverty, human trafficking, exploitation, systemic racism, marginalization, abandonment, women’s rights, etc. As we see each of these categories and think of those who have suffered these injustices we see that all of the mentioned and not mentioned have one thing in common, their VOICES are silenced. Social Justice for me is recognizing that everyone has a VOICE. When one does not value a VOICE that one becomes VULNERABLE, WORTHLESS, HOPELESS and INVISIBLE.
At Buckner I have had the opportunity to bring hope to orphans and at-risk children. I have led mission groups down to orphanages where children have lost HOPE, they have become INVISIBLE to society. These have become VULNERABLE to society’s corruption, leading them to live only on survival, survival is their only VOICE. When survival becomes the VOICE of children, they turn into those who have taken their VOICE. Those who give, travel or pray for these children are bringing HOPE to them, they are taught that they are WORTHY and not INVISIBLE to our God.
I have had the joy and challenge to advocate for and seek VOICES for children-a Forever Family. A parent’s responsibility is to enable their children to live God’s purpose for their lives. Parents do this by being their child’s VOICE. Currently there are 143 million orphans who feel WORTHLESS, are INVISIBLE, HOPELESS AND VULNERABLE because they are with out a VOICE-FAMILY. I have had the privilege to work with some of the most amazing families, who are taking on the call to bring in a child into their family and becoming their VOICE. When I see these children come home to their forever families, where they are no longer “VULNERABLE, WORTHLESS, HOPELESS nor INVISIBLE”, I see Social Justice.
As the Church we need more advocacy for VOICES-Families. We need your help.
God has brought us into His family; we are no longer WORTHLESS HOPELESS, VULNERABLE, INVISIBLE. As children of God we all have a VOICE.
Raising the the Voice of a child is Social Justice.
I want to encourage you to lift the voices of children through Buckner at www.buckner.org
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