Civic Engagement

Washington, DC – Peniel Ibe, policy engagement coordinator at the American Friends Service Committee and Co-Chair of the Interfaith Immigration Coalition, responded to the murder of eight people, most of Asian descent, in Georgia this week: As people of faith, we mourn the victims of this heinous act, and pray for their loved ones who are ...

Washington, DC – After ten years of family separation, Melaku Gebretsadik was on his way to pick up his wife and three kids at the Denver airport when he learned their trip to the United States had been cancelled, their reunion once again postponed. “My heart was broken,” he said. Refugees from Eritrea, the Gebretsadik ...

Washington, DC – Nearly 100 faith-based organizations and over 700 faith leaders are calling on the Biden administration to halt deportation flights and stop expelling Haitians and other migrants seeking asylum in the U.S. Re-designating the country for Temporary Protected Status (TPS) is another urgent need. Said Bishop Philius H. Nicolas with Evangelical Crusade of Fishers ...

Washington, DC – Interfaith Immigration Coalition (IIC) Co-Chairs, Peniel Ibe and Elissa Diaz, comment on introduction of the U.S. Citizenship Act of 2021 by Senator Bob Menendez (D-NJ) and Representative Linda Sanchez (D-CA), among other members of the House and Senate. Peniel Ibe, policy engagement coordinator at the American Friends Service Committee and IIC Co-Chair: We are ...

Our Faiths Call Us to Welcome Refugees and Immigrants Washington, DC – 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 ...

Action Toolkit: The First 100 Days and Beyond for #ImmigrantJustice Share this toolkit: bit.ly/100DaysActionToolkit @interfaithimm • Facebook • interfaithimmigration.org Background The first 100 days of the Biden Administration is a critical time for faith communities to take action alongside immigrants’ rights organizations and immigrant leaders. In the coming weeks, there will be an opportunity to push for legislative and ...

Washington, DC – Leaders of the Interfaith Immigration Coalition respond to President Biden’s executive order restoring our nation’s commitment to refugee protection. Elissa Diaz is Co-Chair of the Interfaith Immigration Coalition (IIC) and Policy/Advocacy Manager at Church World Service, one of the non-profit organizations working with the U.S. Government to resettle and help refugees build new ...

Washington, DC – Haitian families, some with babies as young as one. Cameroonian and Angolan asylum-seekers who say they would rather die than be sent back. Honduran families forced to reside in Dilley immigration jail for 18 months-plus without a fair asylum hearing. A grandfather of 8 U.S. citizens who lived in the U.S. for ...

Washington, DC – To move forward after years of non-stop, xenophobic rhetoric and inhumane immigration policies, the Interfaith Immigration Coalition says the U.S. government must repeal and strengthen; heal and transform. Elissa Diaz, Policy and Advocacy Manager at Church World Service and Co-Chair of the Interfaith Immigration Coalition (IIC), said: “The Biden Administration must repeal Trump ...

Washington, DC – Interfaith Immigration Coalition (IIC) Co-Chairs Elissa Diaz and Peniel Ibe comment on the confirmation of Antony Blinken as Secretary of State, and pending vote to confirm Alejandro Mayorkas as Secretary of Homeland Security. Elissa Diaz, Policy and Advocacy Manager at Church World Service and IIC Co-Chair The Trump Administration’s xenophobic destruction of the U.S. ...