December 2018 Newsletter
Unaccompanied Migrant Children
Last month, the U.S. Border Patrol reported that the number of children unaccompanied by an adult, increased 21% over last year, from 41,435 to 50,036. These children are being housed in over 100 shelters across the country. However, these shelters are approaching 90% of their capacity so new “tent cities” are being built which cost about $750 per child, per day.
In the past, unaccompanied migrant children were placed with sponsors, such as parents who were already in the U.S. or other relatives or friends, who were vetted by federal authorities. However, over the past two years, this process has slowed considerably because most sponsors are undocumented, and are wary of risking deportation themselves. Even those who are willing to become sponsors have to wait months to be fingerprinted and reviewed.
The average length of stay at the shelters has grown from 40 days in 2016 to 59 days in 2018. Child welfare advocates point out that the longer the children are detained, the higher the risk for exploitation by traffickers and smugglers, and the more anxious and depressed the children are likely to become.
The New York Times and PBS
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Resources
Justice for Immigrants Webinar Series Topics include: • Public Charge: Facts and Information • Family Separation and Reunification • National Migration Week • Presidential Determination • Alternatives to Detention • DACA Legislation • World Refugee Day Each webinar has corresponding slides and transcript from the presentation. Learn more. For more on Immigration, click here.
You Welcomed Me: Loving Refugees and Immigrants Because God Loved Us First By Kent Annan. Explores how fear and misunderstanding can motivate responses to people in need. Provides stories of welcome that help see the current refugee and immigrant crisis in a new light. Lays out simple practices for a way forward: confessing what separates people, listening well, crossing social and cultural divides, and partnering with, not patronizing, those in need. Learn more. For more on Immigration, click here.
Perspectives on the Content and Implementation of the Global Compact for Safe, Orderly, and Regular Migration A report from the global network of seven Scalabrini think tanks on migration.The Scalabrinis are a Catholic community dedicated to serving migrants and refugees throughout the world. The report examines the issues discussed and negotiated by the United Nations member states in developing the Global Compact for Safe, Orderly, and Regular Migration (“the Compact”). Learn more. For more on Refugees, click here.
Communities in Crisis: Interior Removals and Their Human Consequences In late 2017, the Kino Border Initiative (KBI), the Center for Migration Studies of New York (CMS), and the Office of Justice and Ecology (OJE) of the Jesuit Conference of Canada and the United States initiated a study to examine the characteristics of deportees and the effects of deportation, and to place them in a broader policy context. The study included surveys of 133 deportees during the first five months of 2018, at a migrant shelter in Nogales, Sonora. Questions on the survey included: Length of Time in the US, Homeownership, Legal Status, Community Engagement, Family and Economic Ties, Consequences of Deportation, Plans to Return to the U.S., The Criminalization of Deportation and Recommendations. Learn more. For more on Immigration, click here.
Open Wide Our Hearts, The Enduring Call to Love A pastoral letter from the bishops of the United States against racism. There are also related educational and parish resources available. Learn more. For more on Racism, click here.
The Opportunity Atlas: Mapping the Childhood Roots of Social Mobility A resource from Opportunity Insights, that uses data from 20 million Americans from their childhood to their mid-30's, to show which neighborhoods in America offer children the best chance to rise out of poverty. Includes data such as household income, incarceration rates, median rent and job growth. Learn more. For more on Economic Justice, click here.
Center for Responsible Lending Conducts research on the extent and impact of predatory lending, to provide useful information to consumers, community advocates, and policymakers alike. They also share their market and legal knowledge with advocates and policymakers across the nation interested in reforming lending practices and frequently respond to regulators' requests for comments on lending issues. Learn more. For more on Economic Justice, click here.
American Hate: Survivors Speak Out By Arjun Singh Sethi. A collection of testimonials from people impacted by hate before and after the 2016 presidential election. Survivors tell their stories in their own words and describe how the rhetoric and policies have intensified bullying, discrimination, and even violence toward them and their communities. Read more. For more on Religious Intolerance, click here. For more on Racism, click here.
Aging in Place A resource from the National Council for Aging Care that has facts & information on senior hunger, such as: • Seniors Being Hungry is a Nationwide Epidemic • The Numbers Behind Senior Hunger • Are Some Seniors Affected More Than Others? • The Challenges That Can Cause Senior Hunger • Illnesses Caused by Malnourishment • Organizations Working to Eliminate Senior Hunger • Healthy Eating Tips Learn more. For more on Hunger, click here.
Bridge of Hope Engages Christian faith communities in ending family homelessness in 13 states, through neighboring relationships -- primarily comprised of single mothers and their children. Learn more. For more on Housing, click here.
World Hope International A Christian relief and development organization that works with vulnerable and exploited communities to alleviate poverty, suffering, and injustice. Focuses on issues such as: human trafficking, access to water, education and health care. Learn more. For more on Human Trafficking, click here. For more on Water Access, click here. For more on the Education System, click here. For more on Health Care, click here.
Equal Justice USA A national organization that works to transform the justice system by promoting responses to violence that break cycles of trauma. Works at the intersection of criminal justice, public health, and racial justice to elevate healing over retribution, meet the needs of survivors, advance racial equity, and build community safety. Learn more. For more on the Criminal Justice System, click here.
Communities United A grassroots social justice organization, that develops local leadership and empowers communities to identify and addresses the root causes of inequity at the neighborhood, city, state and national levels. Through a community organizing approach, develops institutions and community residents as leaders, convenes broad-based coalitions, and unites people across age, race, ethnicity, income, sexual orientation, gender identity, abilities and religion to advance structural change that concretely improves peoples’ lives. Learn more. For more Commmunity Organizing resources, click here.
Genesis Fair Trade Partners with local artisans, paying above-market wages to provide stable incomes and self-sufficiency to people in impoverished areas, improving their communities so they are able to provide a higher quality of life for themselves and their children. Learn more. For more Fair Trade resources, click here.
Why Forgive? By Johann Christoph Arnold. Lets the untidy experiences of ordinary people speak for themselves --people who have earned the right to talk about forgiving. Some of the stories deal with violent crime, betrayal, abuse, hate, gang warfare, and genocide. Others address everyday hurts: the wounds caused by backbiting, gossip, conflicts in the home, and tensions in the workplace. The book also tackles what can be the biggest challenge: forgiving ourselves.These people, who have overcome the cancer of bitterness and hatred, can help unleash the healing power of forgiveness. Read more. For more Forgiveness resources, click here.
Center for Social Concerns An academic institute at the University of Notre Dame whose mission is to engage the Catholic social tradition and mobilize the University's resources to facilitate community-engaged education and research. Through engagement, research addressing injustice and inequality, and partnerships with communities, seeks to advance the common good. Works to inspire students to be responsive to the signs of the times, to accompany community partners and become agents of social justice through educational programs, seminars, workshops, conferences, research, publications and volunteer opportunities. Learn more. For more Justice resources, click here.
Solidarity Will Transform the World: Stories of Hope from Catholic Relief Services By Jeffry Korgen. The values of solidarity and human dignity incorporated in Catholic social teaching comes to life through the stories of people served by Catholic Relief Services. This is a story of what can happen when the resources of the Catholic Church come together with the resources, both physical and spiritual, of people living in poverty. Read more. For more Catholic Social Teaching resources, click here.
Biography
Ben Salmon Ben Salmon was an American Catholic pacifist, conscientious objector and outspoken critic of the just war theory, who believed no war could be morally justified. He refused to fight in the First World War and was arrested and charged with desertion and spreading propaganda. He was sentenced to death, but later re-sentenced to 25 years hard labor. His opposition to the “Just War Theory” put him at odds with the leadership of the Catholic Church but decades later, Catholic peace activists, including Fathers Daniel Berrigan and John Dear, cited Salmon as an inspiration for their anti-war beliefs. Learn more. For more Biographies, click here.
Important Dates This Month
December 1st: Anniversary of the Arrest of Rosa Parks & World AIDS Day December 2nd: Anniversary of the Murder of 4 Church Women in El Salvador & International Day for the Abolition of Slavery December 3rd: International Day of Persons with Disabilities December 7th: Anniversary of the Publication of Joy & Hope (Gaudium et Spes) December 8th: Anniversary of the Closing of the Second Vatican Council December 9th: International Anti-Corruption Day December 10th: Anniversary of the Adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights December 18th: International Migrants Day December 20th: International Human Solidarity Day
Individuals Honored This Month
Kathy Kelly December 10th One way to stop the next war is to continue to tell the truth about this one.
Pope Francis December 17th A little bit of mercy makes the world less cold and more just.
Steve Biko December 18th Tradition has it that whenever a group of people has tasted the lovely fruits of wealth, security, and prestige, it begins to find it more comfortable to believe in the obvious lie and accept that it alone is entitled to privilege.
Jon Sobrino SJ December 27th Hope is the seed of liberation.
Juan José Gerardi Conedera December 27th We are collecting the people’s memories because we want to contribute to the construction of a different country. This path was and continues to be full of risks, but the construction of the kingdom of God entails risks, and only those who have the strength to confront those risks can be its builders.
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