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Catholic Churches Honor George Floyd on Day of Burial
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Dioceses throughout California held special Masses and tributes on Tuesday, June, 9, for George Floyd, an African-American man who was killed while in police custody in Minneapolis. Floyd was laid to rest in Houston the same day.
Some parishes rang their bells for 8 minutes and 46 seconds, while others observed the same amount of time for silent prayer in lieu of homilies. Floyd was held down forcefully by his neck for nearly nine minutes by a police officer that resulted in his death.
Vatican News highlighted the Mass that Los Angeles Archbishop and USCCB President José Gomez live-streamed from his Cathedral in remembrance of Floyd.
"George Floyd's death was heartbreaking. It was wrong. It never should have happened," said Archbishop Gomez during his homily. "His death is a sad reminder that we have still have a long way to go in our country to confront the reality of black inequality and the racism that still infects our institutions."
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Private Schools Concerned Over Allocation of CARES Act Funds
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As some private schools are being forced to close their doors as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, California private school advocates are expressing concern over California's plan to allocate $1.5 billion in funding it received via the Coronavirus Aid Relief Economic Security (CARES) Act.
According to the State's interpretation of federal guidelines, local public school districts may be able to ignore federal guidelines for determining how much Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ESSER) Fund money must be used to provide services for private school students and educators.
The majority of California's public school districts stand to receive ESSER funds from the CARES Act. Depending upon which funding formula they use, significantly fewer dollars might be made available for private school "equitable services" relative to a district's public schools.
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Feds Allocate $2.96 Billion to Help Homeless
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The federal government has announced an additional $2.96 billion in Emergency Solutions Grants (ESG) funding to support homeless Americans and individuals at risk of becoming homeless due to COVID-19 circumstances. This funding is in addition to $1 billion of ESG grants originally established with the signing of the Coronavirus Aid Relief Economic Stimulus (CARES) Act.
These funds will allow for the operation of more emergency shelters, provide hotel and meal vouchers and essential services including employment assistance and outpatient health services. |
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Supreme Court Ruling on DACA Expected Soon
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Any day now, the U.S. Supreme Court is expected to hand down a decision on whether President Trump can enforce his elimination of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) Program.
In 2017, the Trump Administration ended the program that began under President Obama, which allows young undocumented immigrants who came to the country as children (known as "Dreamers") to pursue an education and work in the United States and protects them from deportation. In 2017, President Trump ordered an end to DACA and a legal battle ensued. The Supreme Court has now taken up the case and is expected to rule by the end of the month.
Last year, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the American Dream and Promise Act (H.R.6), which provides a pathway to citizenship for Dreamers, but the bill has stalled in the Senate, the likely victim of political warfare.
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June 12, 2020
Vol. 13 No. 21
California Catholic Conference
En Español
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"The Spirit loves us and knows everyone's place: for Him, we are not bits of confetti blown about by the wind, but irreplaceable fragments in His mosaic." @Pontifex
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