Civic Engagement

Today, 1,038 faith leaders sent a letter to Acting Secretary of Homeland Security Chad Wolf, Senior Official Tony Pham, and the U.S. Congress calling for ICE to “release Binsar from detention immediately and allow him to proceed with his asylum case.” They also demand a statement from ICE “clarifying and assuring that it will adhere ...

Faith Community Outraged by the Administration’s Devastation of the U.S. Refugee Resettlement Program Diaz: “Trump administration is playing the role of persecutor, not protector” Washington, DC – The Trump administration is proposing another historic low refugee admissions goal of 15,000 for FY 2021, according to the administration’s report to Congress. The administration violated U.S. law by not ...

Washington, DC – Ahmad Javed Momand was a doctor in Afghanistan. Now, he works as a lab tech, processing test results and taking employees’ temperatures at a U.S. health care facility. Both of his jobs are vital and important. But only one requires the time and skills involved in completing a PhD in medicine.  Dr. Momand’s ...

If you have planned a faith event or vigil, we encourage you to reach out and invite members of the media. Look online at the local publications or outlets you would like in attendance and search for past articles on immigration or refugees, then consider inviting those reporters, as well as those who cover religion, ...

Hosting interfaith prayer vigils—including virtual ones in this time of social distancing concerns—provides the opportunity for faith leaders to express how welcoming immigrants is part of all faith traditions, reflecting on the deep scriptural and spiritual roots of our work to support immigrants. Even small events, multiplied across the country, will send a powerful message ...

Steps to Take Look up your local newspaper online to find its submission guidelines for letters to the editor. Some will have you email them the letter, others will require you to submit it via an online form. Draft the letter. Keep it short and ...

Black Africans Confront the U.S. Asylum System Washington, DC – On September 30, the last day of National African Immigrant Heritage Month, learn about the journey many Black Africans make to the U.S. to escape persecution–and the journey some are forced to make back via deportation.   WHO: Gladness, whose sister Josephine is facing deportation to Cameroon and ...

Calling on all people of faith, congregations, churches, synagogues, temples, and mosques to establish a volunteer network within their congregations to Get Out the Vote. This election will be the most critical in our lifetime! YOUR VOTE MATTERS The call to promote justice, compassion, and equality is one shared across all faiths. If we believe that our core ...

Recently, a court upheld the Trump Administration’s decision to terminate TPS for recipients from El Salvador, Sudan, Nicaragua, and Haiti and opened the way for terminations against Honduras and Nepal. This means that over 300,000 TPS holders will be vulnerable to deportation starting early next year. DACA recipients continue to face challenges, too, due to a ...

Listen to a recording of the press call here Silver Spring, MD – Last Thursday, ICE agents knowingly violated the agency’s Sensitive Locations policy and lied to Binsar Siahaan, an Indonesian asylum-seeker and six-year member of the Glenmont United Methodist Church, in order to arrest him and carry out his deportation.  In a clear violation of the ...