The Maryknoll Office for Global Concerns issued the following statement on November 19, 2021.
Download the PDF of the statement
The Maryknoll Office for Global Concerns applauds the House of Representative’s passage of the Build Back Better Act this morning. This bill includes historic investments in COVID-19 relief, social services, welfare, and infrastructure, in addition to funds allocated toward reducing the effects of climate change. As people of faith, we now call on the Senate to prioritize passing this historic legislation and retain or strengthen provisions that benefit people and the planet.
Maryknoll Office for Global Concerns Director Susan Gunn:
As Director of the Maryknoll Office for Global Concerns, a peace and social justice advocacy office representing Maryknoll missioners, Catholic sisters, priests, brothers and lay missioners living and working with marginalized communities in more than twenty countries, I want to thank and congratulate the House of Representatives for passing the Build Back Better Act (H.R. 5376) and strongly urge the Senate to promptly pass this Act.
The House version includes funding that will ensure the most needy and vulnerable receive the care and support they deserve. The bill also addresses the global climate crisis, putting the United States on a clear path to cut economywide greenhouse gas emissions in half by 2030; and provides help to millions of immigrants and TPS holders. About these newcomers to the United States, Maryknoll missioners serving migrants on the border and in farm worker communities see every day that not only legalization but a path to citizenship for millions of Dreamers, Temporary Protected Status holders, and essential workers is critical to both upholding their inherent dignity and building the United States’ economic recovery.
I call on the Senate to care for the common good and vote in favor of this historic legislation. The work of breaking the cycles of poverty, forced migration, sickness, and hunger requires courageous and faithful service. I pray for the members of the Senate, that they hear the cry of the poor and the cry of the Earth, and recognize the historic opportunity for a more just and sustainable world that the Build Back Better Act offers.