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Immigration Call-in day and November Webinars November 4th, 2013
The following is adapted from an article in the November-December 2013 issue of the Maryknoll NewsNotes, and is used with their permission.
On Wednesday, November 13, the feast of St. Frances Cabrini, an Italian immigrant who became the first canonized U.S. citizen, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) is sponsoring a national call-in day to Congress. On that day, callers from the U.S. using the toll-free number (855-589-5698) will hear a short recording instructing them to give the following message to their member of Congress: “Support a path to citizenship and oppose the SAFE Act.” After the recording, callers will then be prompted to enter their zip code on their telephone keypad and will be connected directly to their representative’s D.C. office.
[The Strengthen and Fortify Enforcement (SAFE) Act, HR 2278, passed the House Judiciary Committee on June 18. Among other things, it would permit state and local law enforcement officers, untrained in federal immigration law, to issue an immigration hold and detain an individual indefinitely, resulting in prolonged detention for U.S. citizens and lawfully permanent residents. The proposed detention policy calls for an increased number of detention facilities, an increase in the population to be detained (including all individuals awaiting a decision for removal) and an increase in funding for state and local governments to detain individuals in local jails, at a total cost of nearly $1 billion per year. Provisions in the SAFE Act would criminalize religious leaders and houses of worship that provide humanitarian assistance to all persons regardless of immigration status. Section 314 of the SAFE Act would make it a crime to transport undocumented immigrants and “encourage or induce a person to reside in the United States” if that person lacks immigration status. The penalties for engaging in any of these activities are steep, ranging from three to 20 years in prison.]
The USCCB and the Catholic Legal Immigration Network, Inc. (CLINIC) will host a series of free webinars held the first four Fridays in November, 2-3:30 pm Eastern/11 am-12:30 pm Pacific.
These webinars are for immigrant and social justice advocates, legal service providers, faith leaders, community organizers, and others working with and on behalf of immigrants and will address the following important issues:
The first webinar was on November 1: Comprehensive immigration reform 2013-2014: The road forward from the Church’s perspective, Nov. 1: This webinar looked at the legislation and politics which will shape the debate on immigration reform in the House of Representatives, explaining the Church’s position on individual bills.
Recent trends in state and local immigration enforcement, Nov. 8: This webinar will provide an overview of collaboration between Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and local law enforcement agencies through the Criminal Alien Program, 287(g) Partnerships, and Secure Communities as well as the use of ICE detainers to identify potentially deportable individuals in state or local custody.
Immigration detention: Perspectives from D.C. and the field, Nov. 15: This webinar will address immigration detention, including the federal mandate requiring the detention of certain immigrants, the recent rise of immigration detention, and alternatives to detention. Additionally, the panel will include local perspectives on the effects of detention facilities on communities and how local stakeholders can help combat this national phenomenon.
State and local immigration laws: Recap of 2013 and outlook for 2014, Nov. 22: This webinar will review some of the anti-immigrant and pro-immigrant laws passed by states in 2013 on topics including state-issued identification and driver’s licenses, refugee resettlement, immigration enforcement, and access to higher education. Panelists will also address the state-level immigration policy outlook for 2014.
Right to Food Pursued at the United Nations November 4th, 2013
United Nations Special Rapporteur on the right to food, Olivier De Schutter, has submitted his final report to the United Nations. In the speech that accompanied this action, he welcomed “the rights resurgence” that he has seen across the world in the past decade.
“At a time when multiple, conflicting visions for food security have been put on the table, it is impressive to see so many States adopting laws, policies and strategies to realize the right to food, and so many people driving forward what is now a global right to food movement,” he stressed.
Mr. De Schutter said: “Treating food as a human right brings coherence and accountability. It helps to close the gaps by putting food security of all citizens at the top of the decision-making hierarchy, and making these decision-making processes participatory and accountable.”
He noted the importance of non-governmental actors, including religious organizations, saying,“Civil society has an indispensable role to play at every level: driving forward right to food movements, participating in the design of policies, taking part in monitoring, and developing new forms of accountability.”
Congress Urged to Protect Humanitarian Assistance and Poverty-focused Programs November 1st, 2013
The US Region of the Missionary Oblates was one of 140 non-governmental and faith-based organizations that urged members of the Congressional Budget Conference Committee to protect international humanitarian assistance and poverty-focused development programs. The groups also urged that the blunt tool of sequestration be replaced with a balanced deficit-reduction plan.
InterAction, a coalition of groups working on international relief and development, was responsible for organizing the letter. An identical letter was sent to all members of the Budget Conference Committee, which is responsible for reconciling the significant differences between the budget bills passed by the House and the Senate.
Letter to Rep. Paul Ryan, House Budget Chair (Download PDF)
Letter to Sen. Patty Murray, Senate Budget Chair (Download PDF)
Celebrate Human Rights Day: December 10th October 28th, 2013
On December 10, 2013, the world community will commemorate the 65th anniversary of the adoption and proclamation of the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights. On this day, we are being encouraged by the National Religious Campaign Against Torture (NRCAT) – as people of faith, who acknowledge the dignity of every human being – to reaffirm the Universal Declaration’s statement that “no one shall be subjected to torture or to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment.”
The National Religious Campaign Against Torture’s theme for Human Rights Day 2013 is “Confronting Solitary Confinement in an Age of Mass Incarceration.” NRCAT developed a Human Rights Day toolkit to help congregations and religious organizations observe the day. The 2013 toolkit includes:
- A bulletin insert with educational material and an interfaith prayer
- A poster for the promotion of Human Rights Day
- Talking points for integrating the reality of solitary confinement into sermons and prayers during worship
- Links to other worship resources, as well as to educational and advocacy activities that congregations can do to commemorate Human Rights Day
We encourage you to observe Human Rights Day during worship services, as a part of your religious education efforts and through advocacy activities during either the weekend of December 6-8, December 13-15, or another time of your choosing. If your congregation plans to commemorate Human Rights Day in any way, please let NRCAT know.
Access the NRCAT Human Rights Day Toolkit (Download PDF)
CEO Pay Goes Through the Roof October 23rd, 2013
The Guardian newspaper in London reported, “For the first time ever, the 10 highest-paid chief executives in the US received more than $100m in compensation last year, and two took home billion-dollar paychecks, according to a leading annual survey of executive pay.”
The studied showed that the top 10 CEOs in this year’s poll took home over $4.7bn between them, and “for the first time ever, none earned less than $100m.”
“I have never seen anything like that,” said Greg Ruel, GMI’s senior research consultant and author of the report. “Usually we have a few CEOs at the $100m-plus level but never the entire top 10.”
“Father Seamus Finn, a corporate governance expert at Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate, said the numbers were ‘ridiculous’.”
“It’s an amazing number. Who knows how compensation committees come up with them?”
Finn, who has campaigned against what he sees as excessive remuneration at companies including Goldman Sachs, said boards often argued that they would lose talent unless they paid top management huge sums.
“But I’ve seen no evidence of that,” he said. “These huge pay deals are seldom linked to shareholder returns.”
Nearly all the outsized gains came from stock options and other share-related compensation. The top 10 made $3.3bn in 2012 on stock option profits and the vesting of restricted stock. Cash bonuses totalled $16.2m.
See the full article at The Guardian Newspaper
