Dear John,
Each year around this time we reach out to members of the AFSC community like you to ask for your support. We are looking for 600 people to give this month to help keep us on track for our fundraising goals. Will you donate today?
Everyone deserves to be treated with dignity and respect, no matter where we come from. Yet, the federal government wastes more than $23 billion every year on jailing and deporting immigrants. That money would be better spent on getting the pandemic under control and economic relief that benefits everyone.
With support from caring people like you, we are:
Defending immigrant rights: Colorado once had some of the most oppressive anti-immigrant laws in the country. Our program was there for over a decade, building for change. Last year, the state passed three of our top priorities. Colorado is now beginning to fund universal legal representation for immigrants. State agencies need a warrant before they can share information with authorities who deport people. And agricultural workers won a minimum wage, overtime pay, and the right to unionize. Now we are working to protect those rights from roll backs. AFSC supports organizing efforts like these across the U.S. – and it’s making a difference.
Helping DACA recipients, TPS holders, and more: For the past 32 years, AFSC has provided free and low-cost legal representation to immigrants in New Jersey. In 2021, we represented more than 2,000 immigrants, including people with Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) and Temporary Protected Status (TPS). We helped community members achieve permanent status and safety, reunite with family members, obtain work permits, and more. But more permanent solutions are urgently needed. That’s why from New Jersey to California, we are also keeping up the pressure for Congress to finally create a roadmap to citizenship for all.
Stopping immigrant detention: Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Customs and Border Protection (CBP) have separated thousands of loved ones and caused hundreds of deaths. The pandemic fueled the urgency to get people out of detention centers, which became tinderboxes for COVID-19. AFSC programs across the U.S. worked for immigrants’ release, building on decades-long work.
Supporting asylum-seekers: Everyone deserves to live in safety and peace. But today thousands of people fleeing violence and poverty face overwhelming obstacles. Many are deported after spending months in overcrowded shelters or temporary camps. In Latin America and at the U.S.-Mexico border, AFSC is making a difference. We have helped migrants access food, water, and hygiene kits. We have run information campaigns and linked migrants with health and legal services. We have offered recreational activities for children. We are staffing human rights brigades that monitor conditions in detention centers. And we are advocating for migrants’ rights.
And there’s so much more! In addition to supporting our work with migrants, when you donate, you help fund social justice initiatives around the world. You help us work for greater economic justice. And you help communities organize to overcome violence, poverty, and oppression.
Your kindness and generosity make so much possible! If you can, please make a gift today.
In peace,
