Father Louie’s Spirit Is Especially Needed Now

It was the kind of protest that Father Louie would have enjoyed.

The other night, members of three L.A. churches staged their own version of Las Posadas, the traditional Latino Christmas story of Mary and Joseph on their long journey looking for shelter.

But this was no ordinary celebration of religious faith. For in this one, “Maria” and “Jose” are two Latino immigrants who are turned away by a modern-day Scrooge by the name of Gov. Pete Wilson, who says they are the source for many of California’s problems. The procession and protest, played out on the streets of a Spanish-speaking neighborhood near USC, was intended to show that immigrants, like Mary and Joseph, offer hope for our future.

As Maria and Jose were turned away time after time, many in the crowd didn’t hesitate when asked how Father Louie might react to this version of Las Posadas.

“He would have loved it,” said Aurora Gomez, who came from El Salvador three years ago.

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It’s been nine months since Father Luis Olivares died, having succumbed to complications of AIDS at age 59. His passing couldn’t have come at a worse time.

I have missed him and his rhetoric as the anti-immigrant campaign gathered strength this year. I have caught myself on occasion wishing that Father Louie, as he was affectionately called, were still around to fire off a witty barb in response to yet another anti-immigrant diatribe.

He told me in several interviews over the years that he had unconditional love for his fellow man, especially if that person was a penniless immigrant. “Helping the less fortunate, the powerless,” he once said, “is the right thing to do.”

For many years, the defiant Claretian priest was the immigrants’ most vocal champion in Los Angeles, willing to take on anyone. He infuriated U.S. immigration officials when he used his position as pastor of Our Lady Queen of Angels Roman Catholic Church to declare the Downtown parish a sanctuary for refugees in 1985. Cardinal Roger M. Mahony wasn’t pleased by the action either, but didn’t rescind it. He did extract a promise from Olivares to give advance warning to archdiocese officials of anything he might do or say that might be deemed controversial.

Friends joked afterward that it seemed he was always warning the archbishop about something, like his getting arrested repeatedly for protesting at the Downtown federal building.

Central Americans weren’t the only Latinos helped by Olivares. Many Chicanos on the Eastside remember how in the ‘70s, he had encouraged them to organize, as had those in his native Texas who wanted to tackle pressing local problems. The birth and growth of the church-based United Neighborhoods Organization was an early example of his commitment to L.A.’s Latino population.

Although many continue to mourn his passing, it was evident last Thursday night at the Posadas protest and march that his spirit is very much alive. Never mind that the event was staged by a church group named after Olivares. His determined championing of the cause of immigrants was in the hearts of the more than 100 people who came to the modern-day Posadas to lustily boo the mere mention of the governor’s name.

“I came here tonight because of Padre Olivares,” said Sergio Guzman, a 24-year-old Salvadoran, who as a teen-ager was temporarily housed at La Placita by the priest. “It may sound crazy but he taught me about caring. He cared for me. It’s now up to me to care for others like me.”

His friend from Honduras, Arturo Morales, 26, agreed. “I am not a particularly religious man,” he said, “but I now know a little about loving your fellow man.”

One young woman from Blessed Sacrament Roman Catholic Church in Hollywood said it was her duty to keep Father Louie’s memory alive.

“I never met him,” she said, “but I was told he was the biggest defender of Latinos and immigrants in Los Angeles. Seeing this Posadas tonight confirms that to me.”

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The coming year figures to be a joyous one for immigrant bashers. The pressure for more anti-immigrant laws, like the one passed in Sacramento this year that requires proof of legal residency in order to obtain a California driver’s license, is growing each day.

Father Louie would know what to say about it; he had his priorities straight. If anyone complained about his compassion for immigrants or the homeless, he told Times reporter Marita Hernandez a few years ago, he would reply:

“What if that person is Jesus and I turn him away? How can I do that?”