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This week in Washington saw an agreement on stopgap government funding, continued coronavirus aid negotiations, and further unemployment insurance claims.
On Tuesday the House passed a temporary spending bill to fund the government through December 11th. The Senate opened debate for the bill on Thursday and is expected to pass the bill this coming Tuesday. Congress and the White House were able to strike a deal which avoids a government shutdown after September 30th. The bill sustains funding for federal programs at current levels, with some additional funds for children's nutritional assistance and aid for farmers. Congress elected to not include a coronavirus aid package to the stopgap spending bill, causing greater speculation on whether they will be able to pass another aid package before the November 3rd election.
Although one avenue for passing a coronavirus aid package is closed, it doesn't mean that Congress is done trying to pass it. Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi has directed committee chairs to provide requests for a scaled-back coronavirus aid package. It is expected that the updated requests would total roughly $2.4 trillion. This is a decrease from the $3 trillion House-passed HEROES Act from May. The Senate has yet to indicate if they are willing to increase their initial offer of $1 trillion.
Catholic Charities USA is working to bring Congress back together and pass a relief package. CCUSA joined other nonprofits in a letter calling on Congress to return to the table and pass additional coronavirus aid relief. You can read that letter here. CCUSA is finalizing another letter with our Catholic partners encouraging Congress and the White House to come together and help the millions of families struggling.
The Labor Department reported another 870,000 workers filed new unemployment benefits claims last week. An additional 630,080 people filed claims under the Pandemic Unemployment Assistance program for self-employed and gig workers. Ongoing unemployment claims sit at 12.6 million people. Unemployment claims remain stubbornly high six months into the pandemic and the $300 boost in unemployment assistance is beginning to run out in some states.
Millions of families are still struggling and Congress should hear from you. Please tell Congress to act and remember people in poverty in any aid package.
Faith and the Common Good
Today we celebrate the 110th Anniversary of Catholic Charities USA.
We will celebrate with a special Mass of Thanksgiving at 2:30 p.m. EDT with a welcome from Sister Donna Markham OP, President and CEO of Catholic Charities USA, followed by a message from Cardinal Luis Tagle, President Caritas Internationalis. A Mass, celebrated by Bishop Frank Dewane, Diocese of Venice, Florida, and Episcopal Liaison to Catholic Charities USA will broadcast from Epiphany Cathedral. This special event will be streamed at:
· Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/catholiccharitiesusa/posts/10158159581500589
· YouTube: https://youtu.be/haygXTJ-iKM
O God, source of all life and goodness, you fashion human lives in your image and likeness, and through your love, give each human life dignity, sacredness, and priceless worth; awaken in every heart new reverence for the least of your children, and renew among your people a readiness to nurture and sustain your precious gift of human life at all stages, and in all conditions. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
Trivia
Who created hand sanitizer? Please send your answers to [email protected]
On September 18th, the trivia question was, " Who was the first young Mexican-American to attend an all-white school in California?
Dana Sebastian-Duncan was the first to respond with the correct answer of Sylvia Mendez.
Sylvia Mendez became the first Mexican-American to go to an all-white school in California. Her parents sued in the landmark case Mendez vs. Westminster in 1947, successfully desegregating all public schools in California. This was the first case in which the U.S ruled in favor of desegregation, and paved the way for the more well-known Supreme Court Case, Brown vs. Board of Education. Mendez v. Westminster set an important precedent for ending segregation in the United States. Thurgood Marshall, who was later appointed a Supreme Court justice in 1967, became the lead NAACP attorney in the 1954 Brown case. His amicus brief filed for Mendez on behalf of the NAACP contained the arguments he would later use in the Brown vs. Board of Education case. She was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the United States' highest civilian honor, on February 15, 2011.
On May 23, 2018, the board of Berkeley Unified School District voted unanimously to rename Le Conte Elementary School, located at 2241 Russell Street, as Sylvia Mendez Elementary School. The school is a Spanish-English two-way immersion school. Mendez has been a spokesperson at Berkeley schools and her story has been inspirational to Berkeley students, teachers, and parents.
Please share the weekly with your friends, family and networks so that we can build a movement of solidarity for those most in need!
You can also access advocacy opportunities through our advocacy and policy page.
Stay connected with our work to end poverty, follow us on Twitter at @CCharitiesUSA.
If you would like to help further Catholic Charities' commitment to alleviating, reducing, and preventing poverty you can contribute here. |
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