The Forum Daily | Friday, February 23, 2024
 ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌

[link removed]

**THE FORUM DAILY** 

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton's lawsuit against Annunciation
House, a Catholic nonprofit supporting refugees and migrants in El Paso,
is drawing rebuke from Bishop Mark Seitz of El Paso, Benjamin Lynch of
Newsweek

reports. 

In his statement
,
also posted in El Paso Matters
,
Seitz highlights Annunciation House's good work that reflects the
Christian calls to love one's neighbor and help the poor. [Seitz also
is a Forum board member.]  

"On the one hand, we are challenged by serious federal neglect to
provide a safe, orderly and humane response to migration at our southern
border," Seitz writes. "On the other hand, we are now witnessing an
escalating campaign of intimidation, fear and dehumanization in the
state of Texas, one characterized by barbed wire, harsh new laws
penalizing the act of seeking safety at our border, and the targeting of
those who would offer aid as a response of faith." 

Seitz isn't alone: Leaders from different sectors are supporting
Annunciation House and raising concerns about the impact of the lawsuit
on humanitarian assistance work, reports Jesus Baltazar of KTSM
.
"State Leadership are doing their best to disrupt efforts to deal
humanely with migration," El Paso County Commissioner David Stout said.
 

And Jennie weighed in with Jeff Brumley of Baptist News Global
:
"Texas' lawsuit against a humanitarian organization acting on
principles of faith is an attack not just on compassion and human
dignity, but also on religious freedom," she said. "It stands in sharp
contrast to the visionary leadership we need, leadership that points
toward solutions that protect and prompt compassion in addition to
security and order." 

Welcome to Friday's edition of The Forum Daily. I'm Dan Gordon, the
Forum's strategic communications VP, and the great Forum Daily team
also includes Jillian Clark, Isabella Miller, Ally Villarreal and Clara
Villatoro. If you have a story to share from your own community, please
send it to me at [email protected]
. 

**FLIGHTS HALTED** - Venezuela has stopped accepting flights bringing
Venezuelan deportees from the U.S. back to the country, report Kejal
Vyas and Santiago Pérez of The Wall Street Journal
.
The flights had been part of an agreement under which the Biden
administration had lifted some economic sanctions against Venezuela. 

**WELCOME CORPS** - Individuals and small groups in communities around
the country are coming together to support newcomers through the Welcome
Corps, Welcome.US CEO Nazanin Ash writes in the Boston Herald
.
One example is Simone Bamba of Boston, a former doctor and now a
pastor who formed a sponsorship group with six fellow church members. 

Elsewhere in local welcome this week: 

* After assisting U.S. troops for years, an Afghan man finds hope for
his family in Roanoke, Virginia. (Heather Rousseau, The Roanoke Times
)
 

* Resettled Afghan boys in San Antonio are using cricket to build
community. (Raquel Torres, San Antonio Report)
 

* Boston University has teamed up with 10 other schools to launch a
program to help connect and support Afghan women. (Frederick S. Pardee
School of Global Studies
) 

**NEW LAWS** - In response to increasing migrant crossings in Arizona,
state Republican House Speaker Ben Toma has proposed a stringent
immigration law, reports Adi Guajardo of Scripps News
.
The legislation seeks to expand E-Verify in the state. As we've noted
, E-Verify is
not always accurate and is burdensome to employers. The proposal follows
similarly strict immigration measures in Texas and Florida, Guajardo
notes. 

**SYSTEM FLAWS** - Authorities in El Salvador punitively placed
Jessica Barahona-Martínez in Interpol's Red Notice system for
fugitives, causing the mother of three to land in U.S. immigration
detention for six years - including after she had been granted asylum,
reports Nicole Acevedo for NBC News
 and
Sky News. Barahona-Martínez hopes her case will help avert future
injustices in the U.S. immigration system.  

Thanks for reading,  

Dan 

**P.S.** Speaking of Roanoke, the city has been "Certified Welcoming,"
Heather Rousseau reports separately in The Roanoke Times
. 

** **

[link removed]

[link removed]   
[link removed]   
[link removed]   
[link removed]

[link removed]

Unsubscribe from this email list

or opt out from all Forum emails

National Immigration Forum
10 G St NE
Suite 500
Washington, D.C. 20002
United States
www.immigrationforum.org

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton's lawsuit against Annunciation
House, a Catholic nonprofit supporting refugees and migrants in El Paso,
is drawing rebukes from Bishop Mark Seitz of El Paso, Benjamin Lynch of
Newsweek

reports. 

In his statement
,
also posted in El Paso Matters
,
Seitz highlights Annunciation House's good work that reflects the
Christian calls to love one's neighbor and help the poor. [Seitz also
is a Forum board member.]  

"On the one hand, we are challenged by serious federal neglect to
provide a safe, orderly and humane response to migration at our southern
border," Seitz writes. "On the other hand, we are now witnessing an
escalating campaign of intimidation, fear and dehumanization in the
state of Texas, one characterized by barbed wire, harsh new laws
penalizing the act of seeking safety at our border, and the targeting of
those who would offer aid as a response of faith." 

Seitz isn't alone: Leaders from different sectors are supporting
Annunciation House and raising concerns about the impact of the lawsuit
on the humanitarian assistance work, reports Jesus Baltazar of KTSM
.
"State Leadership are doing their best to disrupt efforts to deal
humanely with migration," El Paso County Commissioner David Stout said.
 

And Jennie weighed in with Jeff Brumley of Baptist News Global
:
"Texas' lawsuit against a humanitarian organization acting on
principles of faith is an attack not just on compassion and human
dignity, but also on religious freedom," she said. "It stands in sharp
contrast to the visionary leadership we need, leadership that points
toward solutions that protect and prompt compassion in addition to
security and order." 

Welcome to Friday's edition of The Forum Daily. I'm Dan Gordon, the
Forum's strategic communications VP, and the great Forum Daily team
also includes Jillian Clark, Isabella Miller, Ally Villarreal and Clara
Villatoro. If you have a story to share from your own community, please
send it to me at [email protected]
. 

FLIGHTS HALTED - Venezuela has stopped accepting flights bringing
Venezuelan deportees from the U.S. back to the country, report Kejal
Vyas and Santiago Pérez of The Wall Street Journal
.
The flights had been part of an agreement under which the Biden
administration had lifted some economic sanctions against Venezuela. 

WELCOME CORPS - Individuals and small groups in communities around the
country are coming together to support newcomers through Welcome Corps,
Welcome.US CEO Nazanin Ash writes in the Boston Herald
.
One example is Simone Bamba of Boston, a former doctor and now a
pastor who formed a sponsorship group with six fellow church members. 

Elsewhere in local welcome this week: 

* After assisting U.S. troops for years, an Afghan man finds hope for
his family in Roanoke, Virginia. (Heather Rousseau, The Roanoke Times
)
 

* Resettled Afghan boys in San Antonio are using cricket to build
community. (Raquel Torres, San Antonio Report)
 

* Boston University has teamed up with 10 other schools to launch a
program to help connect and support Afghan women. (Frederick S. Pardee
School of Global Studies
) 

NEW LAWS - In response to increasing migrant crossings in Arizona,
Republican House Speaker Ben Toma has proposed a stringent immigration
law, reports Adi Guajardo of Scripps News
.
The legislation seeks to expand E-Verify in the state. As we've noted
, E-Verify is
not always accurate and is burdensome to employers. The proposal follows
similarly strict immigration measures in Texas and Florida, Guajardo
notes. 

SYSTEM FLAWS - Authorities in El Salvador punitively placed Jessica
Barahona-Martínez in Interpol's Red Notice system for fugitives,
causing the mother of three to land in U.S. immigration detention for
six years - including after she had been granted asylum, reports
Nicole Acevedo of NBC News
. Barahona-Martínez
hopes her case will help avert future injustices in the U.S.
immigration system.  

Thanks for reading,  

Dan 

P.S. Speaking of Roanoke, the city has been "Certified Welcoming,"
Heather Rousseau reports separately in The Roanoke Times
. 

.