On Saturday, May 18, a small group of people from Houston Unido, a coalition of community-based organizations and activists working to promote immigrant rights, traveled to Falfurrias, Texas to participate in a community forum on migrant deaths. Last year, 129 migrants perished while crossing the harsh, desert brush near Falfurrias as they attempted to walk… continue reading
Dangerous Manner Of Deportation Denies Human Dignity
March 29, 2014 by
By Very Rev. Thomas H. Smolich, S.J., president of the Jesuit Conference of the United States. As President Obama’s administration approaches a record-setting two millionth deportation, an immigration enforcement “accomplishment” never achieved by any other president, many faith leaders are rightly focusing on the hardship that each of these deportations inflicts on families and communities… continue reading
A Devastating Journey North for a Migrant from Honduras to the United States
November 24, 2013 by
I left Honduras with a plan of arriving in the United States. When I got to Guatemala, that same day I crossed Guatemala, arriving at the border with Mexico. I crossed the river in a large inner tube of a tire of a tractor or car. After crossing the river, I arrived in Tapachula, Chiapas,… continue reading
A Mother’s Dream and a Plea for Immigration Reform
October 20, 2013 by
I give thanks to God every day for his great love and protection. For many years Casa Juan Diego has given us refuge and we are grateful for all they do for us. I am a mother who loves her two sons. The older was born in Mexico and the younger was born here in… continue reading
Pope Francis Made His First Trip Outside the Vatican To Visit Migrants
October 2, 2013 by
Where Is Your Brother? Who Is Responsible For This Blood? (Vatican Radio) In his homily at Mass celebrated with the residents of Lampedusa and the immigrants who have sought refuge there, Pope Francis spoke out against the “globalization of indifference” that leads to tragedies like the deaths of so many migrants seeking a better life…. continue reading
Immigration And the Next America: Renewing the Soul of Our Nation
August 30, 2013 by
Reviewed by Mark and Louise Zwick Amid discussions about comprehensive immigration reform our thoughts go to the people we know, especially the families which have been torn apart in recent years by an unprecedented number of deportations. Two-parent working families have suddenly become separated. Mothers and children now live in poverty and may not see… continue reading
Pope Wants a Church of the Poor and For the Poor, But a Well-known Catholic Writer Rejects Saint Francis of Assisi
July 5, 2013 by
The very first thing our new Pope did was to choose the name of Francis for St. Francis of Assisi. No Pope has ever been named Francis before. If Pope Francis had not done anything else, just claiming the name of Francis would have had a tremendous impact. (Para leer este artículo en español, haga… continue reading
End Forced Medical Deportations with Houses of Hospitality
June 12, 2013 by
Robby Caceres was a young, undocumented day laborer who was cut down by a heat stroke while working on a roof last summer. Dazed with grief and fear, his brother and a cousin, also young 20-somethings, came to Casa Juan Diego with a plea for help. It turned out Robby’s heat stroke was no ordinary… continue reading
Immigration, the Invisible Hand of Agribusiness, and Farm Workers
March 31, 2013 by
Mark Muller is the Food and Community Fellows Program of the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy About a year ago, Don Lassus reviewed the book Tomatoland in the Houston Catholic Worker. This article takes the perspective of the campaign to address the mistreatment of the agricultural workers in Immokalee, Florida, in the larger context… continue reading
A Just Immigration Reform Will Suspend Deportations While Applicants Wait
March 9, 2013 by
Hope has emerged from the first steps toward immigration reform under discussion in the U. S. Congress. There seemed to be a new bipartisan willingness to tackle the issue of the millions of undocumented people already in the United States. We hope and pray that this effort does not get bogged down in political concerns… continue reading
