A nation that allows the words of Episcopal Bishop Mariann Budde to resonate? "I ask you to have mercy, Mr. President, on those in our communities whose children fear that their parents will be taken away, and that you help those who are fleeing war zones and persecution in their own lands to find compassion and welcome," Budde said at the interfaith national prayer service yesterday, as OSV News reports.
Or a nation that turns its back on the world's most vulnerable?
Speaking of "have mercy," Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Customs and Border Protection officers will now be allowed to enter churches, schools and hospitals to carry out arrests, reports Rebecca Santana of the Associated Press.
The Trump administration announced yesterday the elimination of the policy blocking enforcement in those spaces. "The real effect of this change is that people will be afraid to go to church on Sunday," our partner Matthew Soerens of World Relief posted.
Elsewhere, Pope Francis called mass deportation plans a "disgrace," reports Nicole Winfield of the Associated Press. And faith leaders and advocates in the U.S. are sharing their concerns over President Trump’s executive order that pauses all refugee entrances starting January 27th, reports Samuel Benson of Deseret News.
Jennie also points out that because refugees can work immediately, they can help stem labor shortages.
You’re invited to our Facebook Live at 2:15 ET today with Jennie, our policy expert Larry Benenson, Stewart Verdery of the Council on National Security and Immigration and the Rev. Gabriel Salguero of the National Latino Evangelical Coalition. Reporters, please join us too.
Welcome to Wednesday'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, Soledad Gassó Parker, Broc Murphy, Clara Villatoro and Becka Wall. If you have a story to share from your own community, please send it to me at [email protected].
COMMUNITY — Global Neighbors, a refugee and immigrant welcome center in Des Moines, Iowa, is moving toward completion, reports Virginia Barreda of the Des Moines Register. With services such as language and citizenship classes, "we are really trying to establish a sense of structure and systems to help people successfully integrate into their new communities," said Mak Sućeska, manager of operations.
SPRINGFIELD — Haitian residents in Springfield, Ohio, gathered for the inaugural address — and shared concerns regarding their Temporary Protected Status, reports Erin Glynn of The Columbus Dispatch. Vilès Dorsainvil, director of the city’s Haitian Community Help and Support Center, shines light on the dichotomy between many residents’ overwhelming support while others are telling Haitians "pack their bags." Michelle Boorstein of The Washington Post has more on residents’ concerns. And state and local governments across the country are preparing their communities for large-scale deportations, as a team at CNN outlines.
REALITIES — President Donald Trump’s rhetoric, in tandem with his executive orders, "paint a picture of the border that is detached from reality," reports Adrian Carrasquillo of The xxxxxx. Just one example: Border crossings today are lower than when Trump left office in 2021, Carrasquillo notes. In The New York Times’ "The Opinions," Binyamin Appelbaum shares why the United States will always need immigrants.
BIRTHRIGHT — Ending birthright citizenship would harm the very fabric of America in several ways, writes Gil Guerra for The Dispatch. Among them: demographic and assimilation challenges. "The net effect of repealing birthright citizenship would be a prolonged state of chaos in our domestic politics and our immigration system," he writes. Among the increasing number of lawsuits against Trump’s executive order rescinding birthright citizenship is one from 22 states, reports Mike Catalini of the Associated Press. Learn more about this constitutional right with the Forum’s Q&A.
P.S. For immigrant families in Minnesota, a holy feast last week offered celebration and hope, Giovanna Dell’Orto of the Associated Press reports.
