Resources Shared During the JFI National Call

JFI hosted a national call on June 1st, and the following resources were referenced during the policy updates: 

• Ukraine Resource Page
• Afghanistan Resource Page
• USCCB Committee on Migration Fiscal Year 2023 Appropriations Letter
• Title 42 Backgrounder
• Joint USCCB-Catholic Charities USA Letter to Congress on Title 42
• USCCB Press Release on Termination of Title 42
• Webinar: MPP in the Courts
• Joint USCCB-Catholic Charities USA-CLINIC Amicus Brief Related to MPP 

Two Upcoming World Refuge Day (WRD) Events and Request Reminder for WRD 2022

On June 20, 2022 at 7 PM Central, our colleagues at the Archdiocese of Chicago are holding a WRD activity, Voices of Immigration: Seeking Refuge from War. Please register and join us in a time of prayer, reflection, and music for the people of Ukraine: those who seek refuge abroad and those who seek safety at home. Here is their event flyer:

On June 21, 2022 at Noon Eastern, Jesuit Refugee Services/USA is holding their own WRD event, Virtual Cooking Demonstration with Foodhini. Have your aprons ready as JRS/USA invites you to cook along Chef Zainab from Foodhini as she walks you through the steps to prepare a traditional Afghan dish, Lubya Kidney Bean Stew. Once you sign up for this event, JRS/USA will send you a list of ingredients that you will need to purchase before the event on June 21. Check out the event flyer:

As a reminder, please send Tony Cube or Todd Scribner an email with events you have planned for World Refugee Day 2022. And use #WRD2022 or #WorldRefugeeDay on June 20th.

Policy Update / Actualización de Política

We are thankful to the Center for Migration Studies of New York (CMS) for its weekly Migration Update. Please visit their bilingual Migration Update page to stay up-to-date on recent migration policy updates.

View the June 1 CMS Migration Update, which includes:

• DHS and DOJ are Implementing a Rule to Process Asylum Claims of Individuals Subject to Expedited Removal More Efficiently
• Federal Judge Ruled That Migrant Families Who Fear Persecution and Torture Will Not Be Subject to Title 42 Restrictions at the Border
• US Circuit Court Ruled a Federal Law That Bars Undocumented Immigrants from Having Gun Rights Does Not Violate the Second Amendment of the US Constitution

Agradecemos al Centro de Estudios de Migración de Nueva York (CMS por sus siglas en inglés) por su Actualización de Migración semanal. Visite su página bilingüe de Actualización de Migración para mantenerse al día sobre las actualizaciones recientes de la política de migración.

Ver la Actualización de Migración del CMS de 1 de juno, que incluye:

• El DHS y el DOJ están implementando una regla para procesar las solicitudes de asilo de las personas sujetas a la expulsión acelerada de manera más eficiente
• Un juez federal dictaminó que las familias migrantes que temen ser perseguidas y torturadas no estarán sujetas a las restricciones del Título 42 en la frontera
• El Tribunal de Circuito de EEUU dictaminó que una ley federal que prohíbe a los inmigrantes indocumentados tener derecho a las armas no viola la Segunda Enmienda de la Constitución de EEUU

Migration-Related Op-Eds and Interviews by Catholic Bishops and Agency Executives 



Notable New Publications, Reports, Films, Articles, Etc.

St Anthony Messenger: Welcoming Afghan Refugees

Inspired by St. Francis, Patrick Carolan writes about his personal experience in reaching beyond cultural and language differences to connect with recent Afghan refugees resettling in the United States.

St. Columban Mission for Justice, Peace and Ecology: The Root Causes of Migration

Immigrant justice is not just about immigration reform–it is about addressing the root causes of mass migration, including U.S. foreign policy. This new resource from St. Columban JPE on root causes calls for a “new, hemisphere-wide approach to migration.”

Other Upcoming Events, Opportunities, and Resources

• Center for Migration Studies (CMS) of New York Report Webinar: Social Determinants of Immigrants’ Health in New York City, June 6, 2022 at 4 PM Eastern. This report is based on CMS research that examined the social determinants of immigrants' health in six neighborhoods in the boroughs of Brooklyn and Queens in New York City. For this report, the CMS research team conducted a survey of 495 immigrants across these neighborhoods and convened one focus group to collect data on immigrants’ health and well-being. Analysis of these data, the U.S. Census Bureau’s American Community Survey, and the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene’s NYC Community Health Survey provided insight into the factors that affect immigrants’ health and well-being across these neighborhoods. This study highlights several social determinants of health that likely contribute to the native-immigrant health gap. The study also describes steps that can be taken to close this gap. Register in advance for this webinar.

• Catholic Labor Network Listening Session with Head Start Workers, June 7, 2022 at 4 PM Eastern. In 1965, the U.S. government launched Head Start, a program of early childhood care and education aimed at children in poverty. Designed for children aged three to five, the program intended to give boys and girls in low-income families a “head start” before official schooling begins, with services generally delivered by local nonprofits. Head Start workers – many of them immigrants – in Newark, NJ, however, report extensive problems, including employment insecurity and understaffing, that hurt both employees and the children they serve. Register to join a Zoom listening session with Head Start workers from the Newark-area, followed by a reflection by Fr. Tim Graff of the Archdiocese of Newark on their challenge in light of Catholic Social Teaching.

• Catholic Charities USA (CCUSA) Immigration and Refugee Services Community of Practice Monthly Meeting, June 15, 2022 at 2 PM Eastern. You are invited to the CCUSA Immigration and Refugee Services Community of Practice meeting. During this meeting, we will hear from the field about pressing immigration and refugee services issues and receive a policy update from CCUSA, MRS/USCCB and CLINIC. Pre-register for the meeting series.

• Poor People’s and Low Wage Workers’ Assembly and Moral March in Washington, DC, June 18, 2022 at 9 AM. On Sat. June 18th, consider joining us in prayer before the march. Our friends at Franciscan Action Network will gather Franciscans and Franciscan-hearted people for a brief prayer service at 9:00 AM outside St. Patrick’s Catholic Church on 10th Street NW.  Then we will march together to the assembly location at 3rd Street and Pennsylvania Ave. Get more information on the Poor People’s Campaign website.

• Virtual “Rosary for the Family”, June 19, 2022 at 3 PM Eastern. The Salesian Family invites all in Canada and the USA to a live virtual "Rosary for the Family," on Sunday, June 19th, Father's Day. Click on the flyer below to register:

In solidarity,

Tony Cube