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This week the presidential election concluded, while COVID-19 continues to dominate conversations.
Pennsylvania was the state that pushed President-elect Joe Biden over the 270 electoral vote threshold in the 2020 presidential election. His victory gives the United States its second-ever Catholic president, President John F. Kennedy being the first. In a congratulatory statement to the incoming president, Catholic Charities USA President and CEO Sister Donna Markham, OP, PhD, said "On behalf of Catholic Charities USA, I would like to congratulate President-Elect Joe Biden and Vice President-Elect Kamala Harris on this momentous occasion...As our newly-elected President, we trust you to work with Congress in a bipartisan manner and prioritize helping those who are most vulnerable. Clearly, we as a nation will be measured by how we have responded to the "least of these brothers and sisters." You can read the full statement here. President-elect Biden will be sworn into office on January 20, 2021.
With the presidential election concluded, Washington must pivot toward a busy lame duck period. Before leaving town for elections, the current Congress and White House were in the midst of negotiations for another coronavirus aid package. CCUSA has called on Congress and the White House to reach a bipartisan agreement and provide aid for the millions of people struggling due to the coronavirus pandemic. There are some pandemic-era emergency programs that are set to expire at the end of the year unless Congress acts to extend them, including the Pandemic Emergency Unemployment Compensation program and a federal eviction moratorium. Further muddying the waters is the upcoming government funding deadline on December 11th. If Congress and the White House are unable to reach a spending agreement then a government shutdown would result.
As Congress picks up negotiations, COVID-19 cases continue to climb across the United States. On Thursday, the U.S. exceeded 160,000 cases marking the highest single day count since the start of the pandemic. The increasing number of cases is causing record spikes in hospitalizations reaching 67,096, doubling the number of hospitalizations in only five weeks. The rise in cases puts excessive pressure on the hospital system as beds begin to dwindle across the Midwest and other hard-hit regions. The rise in cases is compounded by historically high unemployment claims.
The Department of Labor reported another 709,000 people filed for first-time unemployment claims and another 298,154 workers filed for Pandemic Unemployment Assistance. The combined 1 million first-time claims were a new low for the total number of claims, but still higher than any point prior to the start of the pandemic. Longer-term unemployment, people out of work more than 27 weeks, saw a 1.2 million increase from September to October rising to 3.6 million. In total more than 21 million Americans are receiving some type of jobless benefits through government programs.
Faith the Common Good
World Day of the Poor, is scheduled for this Sunday, November 15, 2020. This year is themed, "Stretch forth your hand to the poor" (Sir 7:32).
Pope Francis pointed out that the outstretched hands of physicians, administrators, pharmacists, volunteers and priests among others, have "defied contagion and fear in order to offer support and consolation," because "now is a good time to recover the conviction that we need one another, that we have a shared responsibility for others and the world."
As Catholic Charities agencies continue their work to serve especially during the pandemic, we pray together the Holy Father's prayer from Fratelli Tutti.
An Ecumenical Christian Prayer
O God, Trinity of love,
from the profound communion of your divine life,
pour out upon us a torrent of fraternal love.
Grant us the love reflected in the actions of Jesus,
in his family of Nazareth,
and in the early Christian community.
Grant that we Christians may live the Gospel,
discovering Christ in each human being,
recognizing him crucified
in the sufferings of the abandoned
and forgotten of our world,
and risen in each brother or sister
who makes a new start.
Come, Holy Spirit, show us your beauty,
reflected in all the peoples of the earth,
so that we may discover anew
that all are important and all are necessary,
different faces of the one humanity
that God so loves. Amen.
Lumen Christi Institute webinar
Save the date, December 3 at 7:00 p.m. EST. Food insecurity has become a leading indicator of well-being in the U.S. due to the tens of millions of food insecure Americans and the accordant negative physical and mental health outcomes and higher health care costs. Its importance has become even more stark during COVID-19, as rates are predicted to rise by almost 50% in 2020 in comparison to 2019. Join us for a discussion of food insecurity in the context of Catholic Social Thought with a panel comprised of a theologian, Margaret Pfeil (University of Notre Dame), and of economists Bruce Weber (Oregon State), and Craig Gundersen (University of Illinois), moderated by economist Chris Barrett (Cornell). Click here to register and find more details on the event and speakers.
Trivia
Which was the first state to ratify the Bill of Rights?
Please send your answers to socialpolicy@catholiccharitiesusa.org
On November 6th, the trivia question was, " What did the Supreme Court of the United States decide in November 1956?"
Kevin J. Fitzpatrick of Catholic Charities, Archdiocese of New Orleans was the first to answer that on November 13, 1956, the Supreme Court affirmed a ruling that found the segregated bus laws in Montgomery, Alabama, to be unconstitutional.
The city of Montgomery, Alabama, like many Southern cities, had laws enforcing racial segregation in many public places. The Montgomery bus system forced Black people to sit at the back of the bus and, if all the seats were taken, give up their seats to white passengers. In 1955, a number of black women were arrested refusing to give up their seats, beginning with 15-year-old Claudette Colvin in March. Other women-including Aurelia S. Browder, Susie McDonald and Mary Louise Smith-would be arrested before December 1, 1955, when Parks' arrest served as the spark for a boycott of Montgomery buses.
The Montgomery bus boycott was a political and social protest campaign against the policy of racial segregation on the public transit system of Montgomery, Alabama. The campaign lasted from December 5, 1955 until December 20, 1956, when the federal ruling Browder v. Gayle took effect, and led to a United States Supreme Court decision that declared the Alabama and Montgomery laws that segregated buses were unconstitutional.
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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