Immigration Reform

The mural above is called "Sueños." Artist information and background is here.

The time is right to work for immigration reform. The Catholic Church has launched a nationwide campaign to make our voices heard. Even if you are not Catholic, I ask you to consider joining in as the principles advocated for by the Catholic bishops are sensible, just and apply across religious lines.

The US Catholic bishops have always been a strong voice for immigrants, and their stance on this issue has always been a great source of Catholic pride for me.

Postcards will be distributed at Masses all across the country. Ask for them at your local parish. If you don't have access, you can find electronic copies online here.

The Columbus Pax Christi chapter as well as the Catholic Worker have joined in the efforts. We will be distributing these postcards and advocating to whomever we can find.

The website sponsored by the US Bishops on this issue is excellent and summarizes the terms of the proposal and provides responses to some of the most common myths about immigrants. It is a great one-stop-shop for questions and answers on immigration reform.

The immigration reform proposed by the bishops includes the following:

• The right for families to stay intact. Right here in our Catholic Worker programs, we meet families who have been torn apart by deportations and unfair immigration policies. Children are left without parents and are easy prey for the drug culture and gangs.


• The right to due process--many immigrants are detained for months and even years without a proper trial.


• The creation of a reasonable and fair temporary worker program, which keeps families intact and allows workers to eventually move toward naturalization and citizenship.


• Legalization of people who have been living here for a while who can show a record of upstanding behavior.

The truth is that many of the immigrants in this country--especially from Latin America--should truly be classified as refugees rather than immigrants. They do not come here as some sort of "get rich quick" scheme. They risk life and death because conditions are so bad in their homeland.

On a deeper level, it is easy to see how conditions in their homeland are made so unfavorable by direct US intervention and exploitation. Conditions in much of Latin America can be called neocolonial, as foreign businesses and governments support the exploitation of the local people. When people struggle for better living and working conditions, they are often suppressed violently, as seen through the lens of the School of the Americas. Yes, our economic and military policies actually create the waves of immigrants in the first place! The US bishops urge that people should have a "right not to migrate" in the first place by having the option for a living wage and safe, sane conditions in which to live.