Eileen Callejas (C3) brought our briefing about the volunteer effort, Compassion Conquers Cruelty, that started among young people and now crosses generations in its immigration efforts.
The meeting focused on sharing updates about community action and resistance work, particularly featuring Eileen Callejas’s presentation about Compassion Conquers Cruelty (C3), a group that provides support to immigrants attending mandatory ICE check-in appointments at the Crosspoint ICE Processing Center in San Antonio. Eileen described how C3 volunteers have been showing up every Wednesday since last August to provide water, snacks, and friendly support to immigrants who are often nervous about potential detention. Martha Spinks provided additional context about the “natural-born huggers” approach and the valuable narrative exchanges that occur, while Martha also updated the group on the BexarCan collaborative network that aims to connect approximately 80 activist organizations in the community. The discussion included details about upcoming events, including an Action Lab on July 15th focused on older adults and their caregivers at Gonzaba Medical Group clinics, and next week’s presentation about veterans’ work with Support and Defend.
Summary
Action Lab for Older Adults
Ann discussed the upcoming Action Lab on July 15th focused on older adults and their caregivers, which will be held at Gonzaba Medical’s Southeast San Antonio location. The event will feature Reverend Dr. Dawn Martin as keynote speaker and a panel discussion on transportation and housing, with doors opening at 8:30 AM for networking. Ann also mentioned a teaser event for the following week featuring veterans from Stand and Defend.
Compassion Conquers Cruelty Volunteer Support
Eileen Callejas presented on her volunteer work with the Compassion Conquers Cruelty (C3) group, which provides support to immigrants attending mandatory ICE check-in appointments at a processing center in San Antonio. The group, which started in August and now operates on Wednesdays from 7 AM to 11 AM, provides water, food, snacks, and activities for both adults and children to help ease their anxiety about potential detention. Eileen invited attendees to visit the site or meet at nearby Lady Bird Johnson Park, and provided her contact information for those interested in learning more or volunteering.
Immigrant Support Group Evolution
Eileen explained how the immigrant support group started with Comrade Coffee Collective, a group of young people who were more confrontational with ICE agents than the current volunteers. She described how the group has evolved to provide water and coffee to immigrants attending ICE check-in appointments, though they are not currently able to effectively accompany people inside due to the nervousness of those attending. Eileen expressed interest in distributing preparation flyers to immigrants before their appointments and discussed strategies for effective accompanying, including recommendations for non-Hispanic companions.
Immigrant Support Community Initiatives
The group discussed Eileen’s work with immigrant support, where she and a team of bilingual volunteers provide assistance and gather stories from immigrants at a weekly Wednesday morning gathering. Martha described the volunteers as “natural-born huggers” who offer emotional support and collect narrative information about immigrant experiences. Kendra offered to make an email introduction between Eileen and the Centers for Refugee Services representative. The meeting was recorded and would be posted online in the coming days to help share information about their community work.
BexarCan Activist Network Update
Martha provided an update on BexarCan, a collaborative action network bringing together approximately 80 activist organizations that currently lack effective communication. The project involves creating a secure website with help from volunteer web designers, with plans to have a beta version ready in 2-3 weeks for testing. Ann encouraged the group to share information about interested organizations and mentioned learning about Paul Revere’s lesser-known companions in the historical mission.
AI T-Shirt Business Discussion
Darcy from First Unitarian Universalist Church of San Antonio discussed her online t-shirt business called “Politely Political Art” where she creates custom designs using AI and print-on-demand services. Martha announced that the Bexar Can Group now meets every two weeks at the Bear Conservancy Building on Broadway between 6-8 PM on Mondays, and shared that next week’s meeting will feature the organization “Support and Defend.” Ann concluded by asking the group to ponder the question “What is real freedom?” for discussion at next week’s meeting.