JFI Colleagues,

Please see below for the latest updates from JFI.



Bishop Mark Seitz of El Paso and Chairman of the USCCB's Migration Committee Interviewed in Commonweal Magazine: 'At the Crossroads of Migration"

Bishop Mark Seitz was interviewed recently in Commonweal and provided his account on the reality of the border, and what people and lawmakers should know about migrants. Please take a moment to read the interview with Bishop Seitz.

USCCB/Migration and Refugee Services Initiative: Welcome Circles

The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops' Department of Migration and Refugee Services, together with dioceses across the country, is helping to welcome displaced families to the United States through Welcome Circles. This program seeks to facilitate the creation of Welcome Circles for displaced families from places such as Ukraine, Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua, and Venezuela, providing them with the tools, connections, information, and financial support they need to become self-sufficient and settle into American communities. Find out how you can participate and help!

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 February 1 CMS Migration Update, which includes:

• USCIS Redesigned Green Card and Employment Authorization Documents to Improve Security
• Legislators in New Mexico Introduced a Bill that Would Prohibit Local and State Government from Entering Contracts with ICE and Private Immigrant Detention Facilities
• Twenty States Filed a Lawsuit Seeking to Halt a Parole Program that Allows 30,000 Migrants from Venezuela, Cuba, Haiti, and Nicaragua to Enter the United States Legally Each Month
• New York City Will Build an Emergency Humanitarian Response Relief Center for Migrants in a Brooklyn Cruise Terminal

View the January 25 CMS Migration Update, which includes: 

• DOS Launched Welcome Corps, a Pilot Program that Will Allow Private Citizens to Sponsor Refugees Coming to the United States 
• DHS Announced an Expedited Process to Provide Deferred Action to Noncitizen Workers Who are Victims of Labor Violations 
• DHS Extended and Redesignated Somalia for Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for 18 Months 
• DOS Launched a New Process to Allow Afghan Parolees to Reunite with their Families Who are Still in Afghanistan 

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 del 1 de febrero, que incluye: 

• USCIS rediseñó la tarjeta verde y los documentos de autorización de empleo para mejorar la seguridad
• Los legisladores de Nuevo México presentaron un proyecto de ley que prohibiría al gobierno local y estatal celebrar contratos con el ICE y los centros privados de detención de inmigrantes
• Veinte estados presentaron una demanda para detener un programa de libertad condicional que permite que 30,000 migrantes de Venezuela, Cuba, Haití y Nicaragua ingresen legalmente a los Estados Unidos cada mes
• La Ciudad de Nueva York Construirá un Centro de Ayuda de Respuesta Humanitaria de Emergencia para Migrantes en una Terminal de Cruceros de Brooklyn

Ver la Actualización de Migración del CMS del 25 de enero, que incluye: 

• DOS lanzó Welcome Corps, un programa piloto que permitirá a los ciudadanos privados patrocinar a los refugiados que vienen a los Estados Unidos 
• DHS Anunció un Proceso Acelerado para Proporcionar Acción Diferida a Trabajadores No-Ciudadanos que son Víctimas de Violaciones Laborales 
• DHS Extendió y Redesignó a Somalia para el Estatus de Protección Temporal (TPS) por 18 Meses 
• El DOS lanzó un nuevo proceso para permitir que las personas en libertad condicional afganas se reúnan con sus familias que todavía están en Afganistán



Migration-Related Stories, Op-Eds and Interviews by Catholic Bishops, Arch/Dioceses and Catholic Agency Executives

Cardinal Robert McElroy of the Diocese of San Diego: 

Public Service Announcement reassuring undocumented immigrants in San Diego to not fear reporting crime

J. Kevin Appleby, Acting Executive Director - Center for Migration Studies of New York:

Twenty years ago, US and Mexican bishops called for immigration reform. It still hasn't happened

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

U.S. Department of Justice: 

Fact Sheets on Employment Rights for Afghans and Ukrainians (see below) 

The Justice Department has released fact sheets that provide information on the employment rights of Afghans and Ukrainians in the United States. The fact sheets include the employment protections to which Afghans and Ukrainians are entitled, examples of documentation that these workers may show during the employment eligibility verification process, and information on how Afghans and Ukrainians in the United States can get help with a work-related issue through the Justice Department's Immigrant and Employee Rights Section (IER) worker hotline. Click here for the Afghan IER Fact Sheet and Ukrainian IER Fact Sheet.

Congressional Budget Office (CBO): 

The Demographic Outlook: 2023-2053 

The size of the U.S. population, as well as its age and sex composition, affects the economy and the federal budget. For example, the size of the population ages 25 to 54 affects the number of people employed; likewise, the size of the population age 65 or older affects the number of beneficiaries of federal programs such as Social Security and Medicare. In this report, the CBO describes its population projections, which underlie the agency’s baseline budget projections and economic forecast that will be published later this year. Population growth is generally projected to slow between 2023 and 2053, averaging 0.3 percent per year over that period. That growth will be increasingly driven by immigration as fertility rates remain below the rate that would be required for a generation to exactly replace itself in the absence of immigration. 

Pew Research Center: 

After declining early in the COVID-19 outbreak, immigrant naturalizations in the U.S. are rising again 

Nearly one million immigrants became citizens in the fiscal year that ended Sept. 30, 2022, the most in almost 15 years and the third-highest number ever, according to this recent Pew Research analysis, demonstrating the increasing impact of immigration on who lives and works in the United States.

Upcoming Webinar REMINDER: St. Josephine Bakhita - A Saint for Victims and Survivors of Human Trafficking, February 7, 2023 at 2 PM Eastern

We look forward to you joining us for this event. Register for this webinar.

Other Upcoming Events, Opportunities, and Resources

• Assistance Requested: Reporting Your Community Partnerships with Colleges and Universities. USCCB/MRS is gathering information related to any work that resettlement sites are engaged in with local colleges and universities. This could include any kind of partnership with respect to the resettlement process such as volunteering or community sponsorship, internships for students, or any related efforts. We want to better understand how these institutions are involved in supporting refugees and asylees and how they might be able to do more in the future for your agencies. Please fill out this brief survey and let us know what is happening in your area.

• Jesuit Refugee Services (JRS/USA) Employment Opportunity: Digital Communications Director. JRS/USA seeks an energetic, self-starter as Digital Communications Coordinator to develop and execute innovative communications strategies, with a focus on media relations. Reporting to the Director of Marketing and Communications, this full-time position of Digital Communications Coordinator will ensure JRS/USA is communicating effectively to our key audiences and stakeholders – including donors, advocates, and the Jesuit network – through support to overall JRS communications and visibility, relationship building, and the timely production of strategies, pitches, campaigns, and content. Learn more and apply. 

• 5th Annual Refugee Shabbat, February 3, 2023 at Congregation B’nai Zion in El Paso. Dylan Corbett, Executive Director of HOPE, will be a guest speaker and after dinner, the community will make snack bags that will be distributed by El Pasoans Fighting Hunger. Tickets can be purchased in advance. Please consider bringing personal care and hygiene products as well!

• Catholic Charities USA Opportunity Webinar: Strategies for Strengthening Families, February 8, 2023 at 2 PM Eastern. Sylvia Loumeau and Jo Anne Farrell with Catholic Charities of Camden will describe the six week Strengthening Families program they designed and presented for parishes and parents in their diocese, which provides skills involved in bonding, setting boundaries against antisocial behavior, including drug and alcohol use, and how to monitor their children’s emotional well-being and activities. This webinar offers 1.0 Continuing Education Credit. Register in advance for this webinar.

• CLINIC Webinar Training: Parole Program for Cubans, Haitians, Nicaraguans, and Venezuelans, March 9, 2023 at 2 PM Eastern. DHS, has announced new parole programs for nationals of Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua and Venezuela who are seeking safe haven within the United States due to the conditions in their country. This process is being implemented in conjunction with a new border enforcement policy. In this free webinar, CLINIC staff will provide an overview of the programs and how the process works; review sponsor/beneficiary eligibility requirements; and provide tips on completing the I-134A, traveling to the U.S., and benefits after parole. Advance registration is required for this training.

In solidarity,

Tony Cube

Visit the JFI website to learn about us, read policy recommendations and letters to Congress, find materials for your parish, get advocacy resources, access previously recorded webinars, and more! Send us an email to get connected.