Sculptures Promote Migrant Rights Amidst Anti-Immigrant Sentiment in Miami

Public Art as a Message for Migrant Rights

• 🎨 Sculptures are being used as a powerful tool to advocate for migrant rights, with smaller versions displayed at St. Peter's Square.
• 🤝 Businessman and philanthropist Miguel “Mike” Fernandez, alongside Archbishop Thomas Wenski, is behind the donation of these sculptures.
• 📍 Two specific sculptures, "Angels Unaware" and "Be Welcoming," were unveiled at the National Shrine of Our Lady of Charity, a significant site for the Cuban exile community.

The "Angels Unaware" and "Be Welcoming" Sculptures

• 💡 The sculptures, created by artist Timothy Schmalz, carry biblical messages, referencing Hebrews 13:2 to "be welcoming to strangers."
• 😇 "Angels Unaware" serves as a reminder that we may be encountering angels without realizing it, emphasizing the need for kindness and empathy towards all.
• 🌍 The message highlights that everyone is an immigrant in some form, regardless of their journey, whether by "wet foot, dry foot," the Rio Grande, or swimming from Venezuela or Cuba.

Addressing Anti-Immigrant Sentiment

• 💔 Mike Fernandez expresses deep concern over anti-immigrant rhetoric, particularly targeting Republican Cuban-American members of Congress who he feels have not upheld their promises.
• 📢 Fernandez is funding billboards and plans a television ad campaign to counter this sentiment and advocate for a more welcoming approach to immigrants.
• 🗣️ Archbishop Wenski has also been critical of policies affecting immigrants, urging people to see migrants not as threats but as brothers and sisters to be embraced.