Justice for Immigrants

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Parishioners enjoyed family ethnic dishes at a potluck dinner and shared immigration stories.
Reflections were given on the Enrique's Journey

St. Francis of Assisi Parish Immigration Project
The St. Francis Immigration Project works collaboratively with the Washtenaw Interfaith Coalition for Immigrant Rights (WICIR) who provides assistance to immigrants whose family members have been detained and/or deported as a result of raids by the U.S. Immigration Enforcement and Customs Agency.  The assistance includes legal assistance, counseling, housing assistance, and help in locating the family members who have been detained or deported.

The vast majority of these undocumented immigrants/individuals are here solely to work hard in order to support their families. Now, globalization, which promotes the free movement of capital and corporations across borders, but not labor, has contributed to the forces driving migration. There are some “work visa” programs, but, the programs do not begin to satisfy U.S. employers’ demand for unskilled, low-wage labor.

 

“In the Church no one is a stranger, and the Church is not foreign to anyone, anywhere. As a sacrament of unity and thus a sign and a binding force for the whole human race, the Church is the place where illegal immigrants are also recognized and accepted as brothers and sisters. It is the task of the various Dioceses actively to ensure that these people, who are obliged to live outside the safety net of civil society, may find a sense of brotherhood in the Christian community.”   - Pope John Paul II for World Migration Day, 1996

The U.S. Catholic Bishops have stated that the only humane solution to the immigration issue is Comprehensive Immigration Reform legislation. The Peace and Justice Committee of St. Francis supports the work of WICIR.

For more information contact: Sam M. DeNicolo, member of St. Francis at smdenicolo [at] comcast [dot] net (smdenicolo)smdenicolo [at] comcast [dot] net ((at)comcast.net) or 734-665-2828. WICIR contacts: Laura Sanders, createcoun [at] comcast [dot] net ( createcoun(at)comcast.net) or 734-355-2707 and Margaret Harner msharner [at] comcast [dot] net ( msharner(at)comcast.net).  WICIR recommends their attorney Radovan Stipanovic at 734-327-9591.