Editing Sanctuary (section)

=== Sanctuary in contemporary society ===
{{see also|Sanctuary movement}}

For the last few centuries, it has become less common to invoke sanctuary as a means of protecting persecuted peoples. Yet, the 1980s saw a massive resurgence of cases as part of the U.S.-Central American sanctuary movement. This resurgence was part of a broader anti-war movement that emerged to protest U.S. foreign policy in Central America. The movement grew out of the sanctuary practices of political and religious organizations in both the United States and Central America. It was initially sparked by immigrant rights organizations in well-established Central American communities. These organizations first opposed U.S. foreign policy in Central America and then shifted towards aiding an ever-increasing number of Central Americans refugees. Working in tandem, immigrant rights organizations and churches created many new organizations that provided housing and legal services for newly arrived immigrants. These organizations also advocated for the creation of sanctuary spaces for those fleeing war and oppression in their home countries. By 1987, 440 cities in the United States had been declared "sanctuary cities" open to migrants from civil wars in Central America.<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Perla|first1=Hector|last2=Coutin|first2=Susan Bibler|date=2010|title=Legacies and Origins of the 1980s US–Central American Sanctuary Movement|journal=Refuge|volume=26|issue=1|pages=7–19|doi=10.25071/1920-7336.30602|url= https://refuge.journals.yorku.ca/index.php/refuge/article/view/30602|access-date=2020-05-16|doi-access=free}}</ref>

The immigrant-religious organization partnerships of the sanctuary movement remain active, providing essential services to immigrant populations. Particularly notable in recent years is their legal and advocacy work. By providing legal representation to asylum seekers who may not be able to afford it, these organizations give their clients a better chance of winning their respective cases. As of 2008, detained asylum seekers with legal representation were six times more likely to win their cases for asylum, and non-detained asylum seekers with representation were almost three times more likely to win asylum compared with those without it.<ref name=Rabben/> The pro bono legal services provided by these organizations also work to alleviate stress on an adjudication system that is already overloaded with cases—a 2014 study of the system showed that about 250 asylum officers at any one time are tasked with interviewing an average of 28,000 asylum seekers.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Schoenholtz|first=Andrew Ian|title=Lives in the balance : asylum adjudication by the Department of Homeland Security|date=2014 |publisher=New York University Press |isbn=978-0-8147-0877-4|oclc=995330858}}</ref> These sanctuary-based organizations also engage in larger-scale advocacy work that allows them to reach immigrant populations beyond the communities they work in. According to a study done by the "New Sanctuary Movement" organization, at least 600,000 people in the United States have at least one family member in danger of deportation.<ref>{{cite news|title=Immigration Activist Arrested Outside L.A. Church|agency=Associated Press|url=http://cbs2.com/local/local_story_231191810.html|archive-url=http://webarchive.loc.gov/all/20070820230047/http://cbs2.com/local/local_story_231191810.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=August 20, 2007|date=Aug 20, 2007|via=Library of Congress Web Archives}}</ref> Legislative and judicial advocacy work at the regional and even national level allows organizations to support this group of people by influencing policy.

From the 1980s continuing into the 2000s, there also have been instances of immigrant rights organizations and churches providing "sanctuary" for short periods to migrants facing deportation in Germany, France, Belgium, the Netherlands, Norway, Switzerland, Australia and Canada, among other nations. In 2007, Iranian refugee Shahla Valadi was granted asylum in Norway after spending seven years in church sanctuary after the initial denial of asylum.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.news24.com/World/News/Iranian-given-asylum-in-Norway-20071213|title=Iranian given asylum in Norway|work=[[News24 (website)|News24.com]]}}</ref> From 1983 to 2003 Canada experienced 36 sanctuary incidents.<ref>{{cite book|author=Randy K. Lippert|author-link=Randy K. Lippert|date=2005|title=Sanctuary, Sovereignty, Sacrifice: Canadian Sanctuary Incidents, Power and Law|publisher=UBC Press |isbn=0-7748-1249-4}}</ref> In 2016, an Icelandic church declared that they would harbor two failed asylum seekers who violated the Dublin Regulation, and police removed them for deportation, as ecclesiastical immunity has no legal standing.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://icelandmonitor.mbl.is/news/politics_and_society/2016/06/28/asylum_seekers_dragged_out_of_church_by_reykjavik_p/|title=Asylum seekers dragged out of church by Reykjavík Police}}</ref>