Date: 
Tuesday, November 18, 2014 - 14:00 to 18:00

You are invited to a webinar on the Catholic response to the New Sanctuary Movement

People of faith have been advocating for immigration reform, calling on our elected leaders to act on behalf of immigrants, but Congress has failed to move legislation, and the administration has not put a halt to deportations. Believing that we still have a responsibility to act, many people of faith are escalating their efforts to keep families together by offering those who face deportation a sanctuary in our congregations.

Learn more about the new sanctuary movement and how your community can support those facing deportation. Join us on Tuesday, November 18 at 2 PM (ET) for a webinar that will explore a number of ways that you can support, protect, and accompany immigrants at risk of being forcibly removed from their families and communities. Click here to register.

Speakers will include members of faith communities who are supporting the new sanctuary movement as well as those who have made the decision to offer sanctuary. The webinar will also provide background on the new sanctuary movement, information on the law surrounding sanctuary, and the opportunity for questions and answers. 

Panelists

  • Rev. Noel Anderson, Grassroots Coordinator for Immigrants’ Rights, Church World Service
  • Rev. Sara Wohlleb, Congregational Coordinator, Chicago New Sanctuary Coalition
  • Aurora de Schmidt, representative from Saint Vincent’s Catholic Church, Philadelphia, PA
  • Jen Riddle, Advocacy Attorney, State and Local Immigration Projects, Catholic Legal Immigration Network, Inc. (CLINIC)
 
What is Sanctuary 2014? Sanctuary is an ancient tradition that faith communities have practiced throughout history to offer refuge to those in danger. In the 1980s when refugees fled the civil wars in Central America, Catholic parishes, convents, and congregations in the U.S. opened their doors to welcome those who were threatened with deportation back to the violence in their home countries. Today, due to delayed relief for 11 million of our immigrant brothers and sisters, we see an urgent need to take action and keep families together.
 
Why should Catholics get involved? As Pope Francis has said, “Dear migrants and refugees! You have a special place in the heart of the Church.” We are called as Catholics to stand in solidarity with families in our congregations. By offering sanctuary, we can advocate to stop deportation and win deferred action at a case by case level. We will also amplify the moral imperative to stop deportations on a national level, continuing to push for administrative relief and pressure elected officials to offer legal status and a pathway to citizenship for immigrants.
 
Sponsored by:
Columban Center for Advocacy and Outreach
Franciscan Action Network
Leadership Conference of Women Religious
Maryknoll Office for Global Concerns
National Advocacy Center of the Sisters of the Good Shepherd
Sisters of Mercy of the Americas
 
Photo by Paul Jeffrey for United Methodist News Service
Issues: 
Human Rights, Migration