The state was flooded with immigrants – mostly women and
children – and residents were afraid. The newcomers had different beliefs and
traditions, and locals feared for their lives and their way of life. The governor
issued the order: the encroachers must leave the state by March 8 or be killed.
Although we’re a nation of immigrants who say we value the freedom to worship
as we choose, appeals to federal government fell on deaf ears. It sounds like a
story from today’s news, but it was 177 years ago. More than 7,000 Latter-day
Saints fled their Missouri homes that winter with nowhere to go. Most ended up
in Quincy, Illinois, (population 1,500) that responded with food, clothing,
shelter, medical care and employment. “They were robbed of their all and have
been compelled to hurry out of the state. If they have been thrown upon our
shores destitute, common humanity must oblige us to aid and relieve them all in
our power.”
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