Category: Updates

As we continue to deepen our Love Over Fear work—centering healing, connection, and the transformative power of art and culture—we are honored to welcome Pablo Guerrero as a vital extension of this vision. In these times of growing persecution against immigrants, Pablo’s voice and story shine as beacons of resilience and hope. His journey and project, Caminos de Esperanza: Voces de Migrante / Pathways of Hope: Migrant Voices, is rooted in courage and love, embodies the kind of sanctuary we strive to cultivate: one led by those who know the weight of the journey firsthand. At IM4HI, we believe that those closest to the struggle carry the wisdom to lead us forward, and with Pablo’s lived experience and creative spirit, we are reminded that even in darkness, the light of community and love prevails.

Learn more about Pablo’s work and the directly impacted experiences he’s uplifting!

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Art and culture are powerful tools for healing, connection, and resistance—guiding us to create safe spaces and Sanctuary that honor and nurture our beloved community.

Since its launch in February 2024, the Love Over Fear campaign has been a vibrant force in Oakland—bringing together art, culture, and community action. Rooted in the spirit of Sanctuary, the campaign expresses our collective call for love, safety, and community investment, using creativity as a powerful response to harm and injustice.

We’re excited to announce that our Instagram Live series has relaunched for its second year! 🎉 Amina Lei continues to host the Love Over Fear conversations, introducing our new series: Reaffirming Sanctuary—diving into what it means to love and protect our communities. 💜🏡

As part of this work, we’ve been uplifting conversations around the Sanctuary movement—featuring reflections from our staff who hold lived experience and continue to shape this vision from the inside out.

In February, we kicked things off with IM4HI’s Co-Executive Director Rev. Deborah Lee, who reflected on recent events and the broader fight for Sanctuary. Since then, we’ve been honored to feature:

• Danny Thongsy, sharing the power of Sanctuary through the lens of post-incarceration and immigration justice.
• Jose Ruben Hernandez, reflecting on what Sanctuary means for undocumented communities and the fight for belonging.
• Kelly Younger, speaking to how Sanctuary supports healing and stability for individuals directly impacted by detention and displacement.

Each story reminds us that the significance of Sanctuary lives in those most directly impacted.

✨ Check out these powerful conversations on our Instagram page and learn how you can be part of this movement.

📸 Save the Date: Love Over Fear Sanctuary Photo Exhibit

We’re thrilled to announce our second annual Sanctuary Photo Exhibit, opening this April 2025 in Oakland!

Curated by Oakland-based cultural strategist B Dukes, this exhibit will be hosted at Art Together in Chinatown, featuring work by artists directly impacted by immigration. Their art explores how Sanctuary shows up in their lives and cultural practices, offering healing and protection for themselves and their communities.

Opening Day: Sunday, April 20

Closing Reception: Monday, April 28 | 6–8PM — An evening of art, food, and celebration with featured artists!

📍 Art Together, Chinatown Oakland – 1200 Harrison St, Oakland, CA 94612
🔗 [Learn more about Art Together]

🎨 Featured Artists:

• Lalin St Juste
• Alfredo Calderon
• Marybeth Soriano
• Pablo Guerrero
• Guillermo Medina
• Chanthon Bun
• Amina Lei
• Katerine Giron

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Love Over Fear 2023-2024 Recap: If You Missed Our Earlier Events, Catch Up Here!

2024 Highlights
This past year, we hosted Love Over Fear Oakland through IG live podcasts, photo exhibits and community concerts with the help of our Cultural Strategists!

If you didn’t have a chance to experience our earlier events, don’t worry—there’s still time to engage and explore the beautiful moments we’ve shared together. Here’s a quick look at what we’ve accomplished since the launch:

Instagram Live: Unveiling Love

Amina Lei’s podcast, Unveiling Love in Oakland: Stories of Community and Social Change, featureD powerful weekly conversations with Oakland leaders and community members. Catch up on the latest episodes or see the full video project available on our YouTube channel.

• Watch the first curated Unveiling Love video (8 minutes) here.
• Catch all the interviews here on our podcast playlist. 

With the artistic vision and skills of Amina Lei, we created an Oakland Love Map that highlights parks, landmarks, organizations throughout Oakland that embody love and care for the city! Copies of the Oakland Love Map are available for the community to display in their homes, businesses, and organizations.

Interested in your own map? Stop by our upcoming exhibit on April 28 and pick up a copy!

Photo Exhibit: “Love Letter to Oakland”

Our first photo exhibit, Love Letter to Oakland,  launched on September 10, 2024, at the Freedom Community Clinic in Fruitvale, Oakland. Curated by B Dukes, the exhibit highlighted community leaders dedicated to fostering safety and care in our city.

Community Concert Series

Francisco Herrera’s Love Over Fear, El Amor Vence El Temor concerts have been a resounding success! Our most recent concert on June 22, 2024, featured incredible performances by Dyna Erie, Marimba Cultura Maya Todosantera, DJ Freaky Emo, and an open mic session. These concerts continue to bring our community together and celebrate the spirit of Oakland.

• Watch our June Community Concert
• See photos from previous Love Over Fear concerts at the Fruitvale Plaza

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Español Abajo*

Dear beloved community,

To our friends  suffering the LA fires, we are praying for your safety and healing

It is written in the Quran 

“Verily, with hardship comes relief.”

It has been distressing to hear from so many friends about the loss of housing, the toxic air and trauma of evacuating with everything material left behind, the fabric of people’s lives burned to the ground. 

We pray as faith rooted people, we can be part of the circle of relief and recovery from the devastating losses that have resulted from the fires.  We mourn the loss of Masjid Al Taqwa, Pasadena Jewish Temple and Center and Altadena Community Church and other centers for community life. We are especially concerned for unsheltered people and undocumented people who may not have access to resources that can help them through this terrible crisis. 

We give thanks to courageous firefighters, including incarcerated firefighters facing deportation, and community volunteers who have rushed in to contain the fires and provide immediate relief.  We know this fire will be a heavy lift for many religious communities, who are often on the front line of providing relief during times of crisis. 

We know this is Los Angeles’ moment of climate crisis writ large.

These climate emergencies and threats to lives, including planned deportations in the midst of devastation,

are a test of our humanity and our relationships to each other and our nonhuman relatives. 

We pray that as people of faith we respond by lifting up our faith in each other, our humanity and our choice to prioritize collective care.  Every human life is sacred, across all bars, walls and borders. 

May love prevail. 

May the Holy One sustain our efforts and be a source of comfort and hope. 

May the Spirit of Life protect us in our hour of need.   

Board of the Interfaith Movement for Human Integrity

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Querida comunidad,

A nuestros amigos que sufren los incendios de Los Ángeles, oramos por su seguridad y sanidad.

Como está escrito en el Corán:  

“En verdad, con las dificultades siempre llega el alivio”.

Ha sido doloroso escuchar a tantos amigos hablar sobre la pérdida de viviendas, el aire tóxico y el trauma de evacuar y dejar todas sus pertenencias, la esencia de la vida de las personas quemada hasta los cimientos. 

Oramos como personas arraigadas en la fe, para que podamos ser parte del círculo de alivio y recuperación de las devastadoras pérdidas que han resultado de los incendios.  Lamentamos la pérdida de Masjid Al Taqwa, el Templo y Centro Judío de Pasadena y la Iglesia Comunitaria de Altadena y otros centros para la vida comunitaria. Estamos especialmente preocupados por las personas desamparadas e indocumentadas que tal vez no tengan acceso a recursos que puedan ayudarlos a superar esta terrible crisis. 

Damos gracias a los valientes bomberos, incluidos los bomberos encarcelados que enfrentan la deportación, y a los voluntarios de la comunidad que se han apresurado a contener los incendios y proporcionar alivio inmediato.  Sabemos que este incendio causará que se haga un gran esfuerzo para muchas comunidades religiosas, que a menudo están en primera línea para brindar ayuda en tiempos de crisis. 

Sabemos que este es el momento de crisis climática a gran escala en Los Ángeles.

Estas emergencias climáticas y amenazas a la vida, incluidas las deportaciones planificadas en medio de la devastación,son una prueba de nuestra humanidad y de nuestras relaciones entre nosotros y con nuestros parientes no humanos. 

Oramos para que, como personas de fe, respondamos elevando nuestra fe unos en otros, nuestra humanidad y nuestra elección de priorizar el cuidado colectivo.  Cada vida humana es sagrada, más allá de todas las barreras, muros y fronteras. 

Que prevalezca el amor. 

Que la Divinidad sostenga nuestros esfuerzos y sea fuente de consuelo y esperanza. 

Que el Espíritu de Vida nos proteja en nuestra hora de necesidad.   

Mesa Directiva del Movimiento Interreligioso por la Integridad Humana