DC groups welcomed the migrants and asylum seekers that were bussed to the nation’s capital by Governor Greg Abbott of Texas.
Religion
46 posts
Do not come. Do not come. The United States will continue to enforce our laws and secure our border.” Those were the words Vice President Kamala Harris spoke, and wanted the world to hear, in her trip to Guatemala this week.
It is not “illegal” to seek asylum in the United States. It is immoral to fail to see people seeking asylum for what they are–human beings who never planned to become “refugees,” but have been forced to flee or watch their children die. Recognizing this reality, the only way to address it is through a humane, orderly path to safety.
Ahead of Ash Wednesday, the Interfaith Immigration Coalition (IIC) is releasing a booklet of nine Lenten reflections to guide individuals and congregations seeking to review how our faith-based values require us to demand a just and humane immigration system. Also during this time, IIC member HIAS is once again hosting its Refugee Shabbat, assisting congregations, organizations, and individuals in the United States and around the world with dedicating a Shabbat experience to refugees and asylum seekers.
The Interfaith Immigration Coalition (IIC) released “The Interfaith Framework for Welcoming and Supporting Migrants, Immigrants, Asylum Seekers, and Refugees,” a set of recommendations on immigration-related policy for the Biden-Harris administration. Together, these changes remove the Trump administration’s anti-immigrant, anti-refugee, anti-Muslim, and racial bias from federal administration, and begin to restore fairness and welcome to immigrants, refugees, asylum seekers, and their loved ones.
Over 1,000 faith leaders from forty-three states, including WI, MI, PA, NC, and the District of Columbia sent a letter to Acting Secretary of Homeland Security Chad Wolf, Senior Official Tony Pham, and the U.S. Congress calling for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to “release Binsar [Siahaan] from detention immediately and allow him to proceed with his asylum case.”