Washington, DC – Over the weekend, the Senate passed the Inflation Reduction Act without any anti-immigrant amendments, in no small part due to the united voice of directly impacted individuals, human rights groups, faith communities, and advocates across the country. Though far from perfect, the Inflation Reduction Act includes critical measures to improve healthcare access, address climate crises, and reduce inflation.
The member organizations of the Interfaith Immigration Coalition (IIC) celebrate the clean passage of the Inflation Reduction Act and issued the following statements:
“Church World Service commends the Senate passage of this historic package with impactful healthcare, climate, and deficit reduction measures that will benefit communities across the country,” said Elissa Diaz, Associate Director of Policy and Advocacy at Church World Service. “While this package is not perfect, it takes critical steps towards a sustainable future. We are especially grateful to the Senate Democrats, notably Senators Robert Menendez and Alex Padilla, who showed immense leadership against amendments seeking to harm immigrant and refugee communities. These Senators, including Majority Leader Schumer and Majority Whip Durbin, sent a clear message that we as faith communities stand by – hate and xenophobia have no place in U.S. policies and no place in our communities. Now, we urge the House to follow suit and pass a clean bill that does not play political games with immigrant and refugee lives.”
“The Unitarian Universalist Service Committee celebrates that our Senators refused to compromise on immigrant rights and the border by voting down two separate Title 42 amendments to the Inflation Reduction Act that would have extended the border closure for asylum-seekers indefinitely. We are pleased with the passage of the Inflation Reduction Act, which can lighten the burden on working families without sacrificing the rights of asylum-seekers,” said Rev. Mary Katherine Morn, President of the Unitarian Universalist Service Committee. “Our faith communities united for two weeks of phone calls to the Senate in late July to demand that they keep anti-immigrant Title 42 amendments out, and our pressure worked. Even though we have succeeded in preventing this measure in the Senate vote-a-Rama, the work to restore fair access to asylum in the United States continues. Our border remains closed to the vast majority of those seeking safety at this time—a violation of both international law and our values as a nation.”
“This weekend, the Senate passed the necessary Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 which will address climate change and skyrocketing healthcare costs. Not only was this an essential success, but just as important, our efforts and the efforts of many other aligned organizations prevented the attempts to use this bill as a vehicle to harm immigrants,” said Rabbi Joshua Lesser, President of Bridges Faith Initiative. “We are grateful for the incredible efforts of our activists in calling and emailing their Senators to urge them to vote no on these anti-immigrant amendments. I am especially thankful for the efforts of the Senators of my home state of Georgia, Senator Warnock and Senator Ossoff, for their commitment to not play politics with people’s lives and pass legislation that makes our economy work for everyone.”
“Franciscan Action Network welcomes with gratitude the hard-fought passage of the Inflation Reduction Act by the Senate,” said Sister Marie Lucey, OSF, Associate Director of FAN. “We especially thank the Senators who led the move to oppose any anti-immigrant amendments to the bill. We realize that the bill is far from perfect, and includes several regrettable compromises, but, if passed by the House, it will provide needed measures to address the climate crisis and improve access to health care. Grounded in our faith and the Franciscan tradition, and with renewed spiritual energy, we now join the effort to urge the House to pass this legislation and move it to the President’s desk.”
“We are very pleased with the passage of the Inflation Reduction Act with no measures to further deny asylum or criminalize migration,” said Dylan Corbett, Executive Director of the Hope Border Institute. “We will continue to work for welcoming and hospitable policies for vulnerable migrants in need of protection, including the full restoration of asylum at the border.”
“We celebrate the Senate’s passage of the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022, free of anti-immigrant amendments,” stated Barbara Weinstein, Director of the Reform Jewish Movement’s Commission on Social Action. “This legislation is a major investment in climate, energy, and health care, and we are glad it was not derailed by attempts to harm immigrants and their families. We look forward to the House considering the bill and urge them to swiftly pass this historic legislation. Time and again, the Jewish people have experienced the consequences of harsh migration policies and indifference to the suffering of the world’s most vulnerable people. It is this history that inspires us to encourage Congress to take dedicated action to restore asylum and provide relief to our 11 million undocumented neighbors.”
“NETWORK’s Spirit-filled community of justice-seekers celebrates the clean passage of the Inflation Reduction Act,” said Ronnate Asirwatham, Government Relations Director, NETWORK Lobby for Catholic Social Justice. “We applaud Senator Schumer’s leadership and send our prayerful thanks to Senators Menendez and Padilla for standing with immigrants to ensure that there were no amendments that criminalized or harmed people seeking asylum—or immigrants living within the U.S.—attached to this bill. We will continue to advocate for policies that welcome, restore asylum, and provide a pathway to citizenship for our immigrant family.”
Fran Eskin-Royer, executive director of the National Advocacy Center of the Sisters of the Good Shepherd (NAC), said, “The NAC applauds the Senate’s passage of the Inflation Reduction Act free of any tainting amendments around immigration and refugees. We are grateful that this legislation remained centered on the vulnerable and on the critical climate issue, and was not tied to anti-immigrant amendments counter to our nation’s tradition of welcome. The Inflation Reduction Act is poised to help people and planet, and stays true to the U.S.’s commitment to embrace all – we urge the House to quickly pass the bill.”
The Interfaith Immigration Coalition is made up of over 55 national, faith-based organizations brought together across many theological traditions with a common call to seek just policies that lift up the God-given dignity of every individual. In partnership, we work to protect the rights, dignity, and safety of all refugees and migrants. Follow us on Twitter @interfaithimm
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