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UPDATES ON CENTRAL AMERICAN CHILDREN AND MOTHERS TARGETED IN RECENT ICE RAIDS, AND BORDER CONCERNS
1) As you may have heard, CENTRAL AMERICAN MOTHERS AND CHILDREN HAVE BEEN THE TARGET OF ICE RAIDS for the past month. See
here
a letter signed recently by Dr. Watkins and other national faith leaders and organizations
, reminding the administration of the violence from which the children had fled in their homelands of Guatemala, Honduras, and El Salvador--and urging that the raids and the family separation they cause be halted.
2) CONSIDER JOINING WITH THOUSANDS of faith, immigrant, and human rights advocates across the country in signing a similar letter, requesting a halt to the raids. This letter, together with the faith letter above, will be presented to the White House this coming Tuesday, February 2nd. Please sign on
HERE
AS SOON AS POSSIBLE, so that your name might be among all delivered to the President next week!
3) PLEASE READ THESE FAMILIES' OWN WORDS, from 7 families targeted in the raids and now subject to deportation from Texas, who are asking for protection from return to environments of violence. Then, SUPPORT THEM BY SIGNING THEIR LETTER
4) P
lease see
HERE
a report from United We Dream on "Immigration Raids: The Real Impact,"
as well as
THIS RECENT
FOOTAGE
from Al Punto, which sadly shows the human impact of family separations experienced as parents are detained.
5) AND, REGISTER NOW TO PARTICIPATE IN OUR BORDER ISSUES WEBINAR ON MONDAY, FEB. 1st, at 4:00 p.m. Eastern Time. Learn more about "Our Faith Response to Border Militarization and Central American Asylum Seekers". Additional information about webinar speakers, and a link to RSVP, is below:
Misguided, militarized efforts to "secure" the U.S. southern border have surged over the past 10 years. The Border Patrol has more than doubled in size, making Customs and Border Protection (CBP) our nation's largest law enforcement agency.
Border communities and migrants alike have paid a heavy toll for this highly militarized, "enforcement first" approach -- over 40 individuals, including children, have been killed by border agents in excessive use of force incidents since 2010 and hundreds of migrants die of dehydration, hypothermia and other each year as the border crackdown pushes them to cross in ever more remote and treacherous terrain.
The U.S. has attempted to stop migrants before they even arrive to the U.S. border. Responding to pressure from the U.S., Mexico is militarizing its southern border region and is on track to apprehend and deport more Central Americans than the U.S. this year. However, faith leaders and communities in the region have pushed back, calling for an end to inhumane, militarized policies and for us to welcome and protect those seeking refuge.
In this webinar, we will provide updates on what is happening in the U.S. and Mexican southern border regions and discuss strategy to reform our approach to border policy to ensure that the rights of migrants and communities are protected.
Speakers/Facilitator:
- Rev. Dr. Sharon Stanley-Rea, Director, Refugee & Immigration Ministries, Disciples of Christ
- Jenny Johnson, Policy Advisor for the Southern Border Communities Coalition/Church World Service
- Shaina Aber, Policy Director, National Advocacy Office, Jesuit Conference
Call in Number:
(641) 715-3670
Code: 104402
Thank you for your commitment to share compassion with, and to build justice for, refugees and immigrants!
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