November 7, 2020

Catholic Organizations on US-Mexico Border Congratulate President-Elect Biden, Commit to Working for Immigration Reform
 

We congratulate you, Mr. Joseph R. Biden Jr., on the occasion of your election as the next President of the United States.

You assume office at a time when the country faces sweeping challenges and needs. We require a renewed sense of politics as commitment to the common good, repaired democratic institutions and norms, a path forward through the pandemic, racial reconciliation and reparation, and a vision capable of generating solidarity and bridging divides. 

As organizations working directly with migrants and refugees at the US-Mexico border, we will continue to lift up and empower voices from the margins. The anguish of those punished daily at the border for seeking safe and dignified lives for themselves and their families delivers a harsh verdict: the US immigration system, the global economy and entrenched attitudes of indifference are failing our sisters and brothers in need. Enforcement-only strategies continue to separate families and deport long-standing community members who enrich our country.

We commit to working with you to assist those who have been left behind and ignored at our border. We request you immediately prioritize badly-needed immigration reforms. In order to meet the needs and opportunities of this historic moment, reforms need to include a pathway to citizenship for the undocumented, an end to mass detention and deportation, a restoration and renewal of the asylum system, development-focused aid to sending countries to address the root causes of migration, and a thorough re-evaluation of immigration enforcement at the border. Above all, you must lead with a person-focused vision that recognizes the human dignity of all regardless of immigration status and champions our interconnected and vibrant border communities.

What we need now is moral leadership to bring us together and reject hate in all forms. As a fellow Catholic, we urge you to embrace the oppressed and vulnerable in our midst, who we believe are no less than the Christ knocking at our door.

Rev. Sean Carroll SJ, Executive Director
Kino Border Initiative

Sr. Norma Pimentel MJ, Executive Director
Catholic Charities of the Rio Grande Valley

Dylan Corbett, Executive Director
Hope Border Institute