Minnesota parishioners examine how they can be more inclusive

Published: 2004-04-12

ST. PAUL, Minn. (CNS) -- Imagine beginning a job in a new country where misconceptions are the norm. Prisciliano Maya knows that feeling all too well, and his story was one of several shared during a workshop on racism at Sacred Heart Church in St. Paul. Maya, a native of Mexico, moved to Minnesota five years ago to begin a career with a company in the Minneapolis-St. Paul area. When he started the job, many people in the organization did not think an immigrant who spoke little English could be a systems programmer for the company. "They didn't accept me (initially) because they thought Mexicans could only work as a janitor, ... as someone who cleaned the floors," Maya said. One of his managers also instituted a policy where Maya and co-workers who spoke Spanish could not converse in their native language. The policy was rescinded after about a year, said Maya, who is now bilingual. The March workshop at Sacred Heart drew about 40 parishioners, who included Hispanics, African-Americans and Anglos. The gathering was the first in a series of parish events planned in response to a pastoral letter on racism issued last year by Archbishop Harry J. Flynn of St. Paul and Minneapolis.

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