October 9, 2020

Inside this issue

• CCUSA Presents the Washington Weekly

  CCUSA Presents the Washington Weekly  
 
The dominant news out of Washington this week saw Coronavirus aid talks end abruptly, then restart, as the stifled economy continues to leave millions of people struggling.

On Tuesday, President Trump announced he was halting COVID-19 aid talks, and later called on Congress to pass standalone bills for the Payment Protection Program, stimulus checks, and airline relief. On Thursday, House Speaker, Nancy Pelosi, rejected the idea of passing standalone aid bills and continued to push a broader aid package. Later that day the president shifted his position indicating he wants a "big deal," and Treasury Secretary, Steve Mnuchin, and Speaker Pelosi restarted their negotiations.

Even with negotiations restarting, the timeline for passing a broader package remains questionable. The Senate has canceled all floor action through October 18th due to the recent Covid-19 outbreak among a number of senators. The Senate is also focusing their attention on confirming a new Supreme Court justice.

This week, Catholic Charities President and CEO, Sister Donna Markham OP, PhD, called on the administration and Congress to return to negotiations and pass a broad relief package. "Our nation is experiencing a profound crisis with over 210,000 lives lost, 30 million Americans relying on unemployment assistance, and communities continuing to fight COVID-19 surges," she said. You can read the full statement here.

Unemployment claims continued to rise at an unprecedented rate as another 840,000 people filed first-time claims last week. Nonetheless, this is the lowest number of new claims since the pandemic sidelined the economy in March. Yet, it still remains higher than any other week prior to the pandemic, in history. Continuing claims dropped by nearly 1 million to 10.98 million. The unemployment rate dipped from 8.2% to 7.5%, the lowest since March 28th. There remain 25.5 million workers collecting some form of unemployment aid.

You can encourage your member of Congress to act on coronavirus aid relief and remember people in poverty in any aid package. 

Disaster Response

Hurricane Delta is the twenty-fifth named storm of the 2020 hurricane season, and the fourth hurricane to make landfall in Louisiana this season. With emerging Hurricane Delta and continued wildfires, you can help your neighbors with a donation that will provide immediate relief and long-term recovery assistance.

Faith and the Common Good

Last week, Pope Francis issued his newest encyclical, Fratelli Tutti ("Brothers all") concerning fraternity and social friendship.  The Holy Father calls us to build a world where peace and justice abound.  He reminds us to reject global indifference while building bridges of love.

"94. Love, then, is more than just a series of benevolent actions. Those actions have their source in a union increasingly directed towards others, considering them of value, worthy, pleasing and beautiful apart from their physical or moral appearances. Our love for others, for who they are, moves us to seek the best for their lives. Only by cultivating this way of relating to one another will we make possible a social friendship that excludes no one and a fraternity that is open to all."

Fratelli Tutti, Pope Francis, October 3, 2020

Fratelli Tutti: A prayer to the Creator
Lord, Father of our human family,
you created all human beings equal in dignity:
pour forth into our hearts a fraternal spirit
and inspire in us a dream of renewed encounter,
dialogue, justice and peace.
Move us to create healthier societies
and a more dignified world,
a world without hunger, poverty, violence and war.
May our hearts be open
to all the peoples and nations of the earth.
May we recognize the goodness and beauty
that you have sown in each of us,
and thus forge bonds of unity, common projects,
and shared dreams. Amen.

Trivia
Who won the Nobel Peace Prize working to keep Latin America a nuclear weapons free zone and also known as "Mr. Disarmament"?
Please send your answers to [email protected]
On October 2nd, the trivia question was, "Which woman co-founded the National Farm Workers Association?"

Dolores Clara Fernández Huerta is an American labor leader and civil rights activist who, with Cesar Chavez, is a co-founder of the National Farmworkers Association, which later became the United Farm Workers (UFW). Huerta helped organize the Delano grape strike in 1965 in California and was the lead negotiator in the workers' contract that was created after the strike.

We continue to keep our farmworkers in prayer as they face two major risks this difficult year, wildfires and the COVID-19 pandemic.  
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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