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HUMAN TRAFFICKING/IMMIGRATION
October 8, 2013
Local Catholic Sisters stand up for immigration reform
Sisters of the Holy Family and the
Dominican Sisters of Mission San Jose
have united with people across the
country in FAST ACTION for Immigration Reform.
Sister Gladys Guenther, SHF, President of Sisters of the Holy Family, said,
“from Sept. 9 through Oct. 18, Sisters
will be engaged in prayer, fasting and
action aimed at urging Congress to fix
our broken immigration system.
“This is an opportunity to add our
voices to other faith communities in
urging Congress to enact reform that
reflects the best of our values and helps
to build a stronger, more welcoming
country,” she said.
As a symbolic beginning of their efforts, on Sept. 10 the Sisters and friends
gathered on the sidewalk along Mission Boulevard in Fremont to hang a
banner, an adaptation of a quote from
Jesus: “I was an immigrant and you
welcomed me.”
Sister Gladys said that their current
stance on immigration is an extension
of what “we have always done -- served
and cared for immigrant populations.”
Her congregation began in San Francisco in the 1880s where their foundress
served Italian families and children
in North Beach. The work continues
today serving Kmhmu, Hispanic farm
workers and other immigrant and
marginalized people.
C a t h o l i c S o c i a l Te a c h i n g
on immigration
Archbishop José H. Gomez of Los
Angeles, chairman of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ (USCCB)
Committee on Migration has called for
Congress to enact humane immigration reform legislation soon.
He said, “Each day in our parishes,
social service programs, hospitals,
and schools we witness the human
consequences of a broken immigration
system. Families are separated, migrant
workers are exploited, and our fellow
human beings die in the desert. With-
Sisters and friends hang banner on fence on Mission Boulevard in Fremont, calling attention to immigration reform issue.
out positive change to our immigration
laws, we cannot help our brothers and
sisters.”
The website of the USCCB offers the
following prospective: “The Catholic
Church in the United States is an immigrant Church with a long history
of embracing diverse newcomers and
providing assistance and pastoral care
to immigrants, migrants, refugees, and
people on the move.
“Our Church has responded to
Christ’s call for us to ‘welcome the
stranger among us,’ for in this encounter with the immigrant, the migrant,
and the refugee in our midst, we encounter Christ.”
The body of Church teaching includes papal encyclicals, bishops’
statements and pastoral letters. In the
2001 pastoral statement, Welcoming
the Stranger Among Us: Unity in
Diversity, the Bishops of the United
States called Catholics to solidarity
with diverse newcomers.
In 2003, U.S. Bishops together with
the Bishops of Mexico, in their pastoral statement, “Strangers No Longer: Together on the Journey of
Hope”/“Juntos en el Camino de la
Daughters of Charity of St. Vincent de Paul
Totally Given to God in Community in a Spirit of Humility,
Simplicity and Charity for the Service of those who are Poor since 1633.
Are you c alled to be a Sister?
Meet us at the Faith Formation Conference
November 22-23, 2013 ~ Santa Clara Convention Center
Discernment for single catholic women ages 18-40.
Esperanza Ya no Somos Extranjeros,”
acknowledged the current immigration
system is in need of reform.
Sisters of the Holy Family and the
Dominican Sisters of San Jose invite
others to join them and take part in
the effort -- pray, fast, and take action
by starting or signing petitions, and by
contacting legislative representatives.
For further information contact:
Sister Gladys Guenther, President,
Sisters of the Holy Family, 510-292-9833;
or Charlotte Hall, Hall Media Group,
530-895-9484, [email protected]
T
he Valley Catholic
Local Sisters work
against human
trafficking
Stop Slavery: Northern California
Coalition of Catholic Sisters Against Human Trafficking is a partnership of 10
Bay Area congregations of Religious
women. They believe that victims of
human trafficking may be rescued if
local hotel managers and their staffs
are trained to recognize signs of
human traffick ng and report suspii
cious activity to au horities.
t
They contacted Starwood Hotels
& Resorts Worldwide, Inc., global hotel company and owner and operator
of St. Re is Hotels & Resorts. Sisters
g
e-mailed managers, sent letters and
information about human traffick
ing and made personal visits to 16
local hotels.
Participating in the Coalition are
Daughters of Charity of St. Vincent
de Paul, Dominican Sisters of San
Rafael, Marist Missionary Sisters,
Dominican Sisters of Mission San
Jose, Religious of the Sacred Heart of
Jesus, Sisters of Mercy, Sisters of the
Presentation, Sisters of St. Francis,
Sisters of St. Joseph of Orange, and
Sisters of the Holy Names.
To learn more about human trafficking, go to www.polarisproject.
org or www.stopslavery.org.
Santa Clara County Coalition for
Comprehensive Immigration Reform joins
NATIONAL DAY OF DIGNITY AND RESPECT
Immigrant rights organizations
nationwide continued escalating
pressure on members of Congress to
pass a comprehensive immigration
reform bill by holding more than 100
events Oct. 5 as part of the “Day of
Dignity and Respect” for all immigrant
families.
In San Jose, SIREN is part of the Santa
Clara Coalition for Comprehensive
Immigration Reform that participated
by holding a neighborhood march
with community members, elected
officials and immigrant rights activists
calling on Congress to allow a vote on
immigration reform.
Supporters demand immigration
reform with a path to citizenship
that protects the unity of the family
and rights of workers and stops the
militarization of the border.
“The Day of Dignity and Respect
was to show House Republicans why
they must act quickly on passing an
immigration reform bill that contains a
path to citizenship and keeps families
together,” said Lucila Ortiz, Community
Organizer with SIREN.
Participants met in the morning at
Christ the King Catholic Church, 5284
Monterey Hwy, San Jose and marched
to rally at Great Oaks Park, 5221 Snow
Drive, San Jose.
Speakers included Congressman
Mike Honda, Councilmember Ash
Kalra, and undocumented local people
who told of the negative impact Congress
inaction has had on their lives.
Begun in 1987, SIREN (Services,
Immigrant Rights & Education Network)
has assisted nearly 5,000 immigrants to
become citizens, educated over 35,000
new American Citizens about voting
rights, and promoted new local policies
to improve the living conditions of
immigrants.
Countering human trafficking
CONTACT:
Sr. Lisa Laguna, D.C.
[email protected] DaughtersOfCharity.com
650-949-8890
www.valleycatholiconline.com
213-210-9903
Bishop Patrick J. McGrath has established an Anti-Human Trafficking Network in the Diocese of San Jose under the auspices of the Department of Social
Ministries, headed by Linda Batton.
The Network meets monthly to strategize ways to counter the trafficking
problem, especially educating local parishioners in a diocese which is home to
people from many parts of the world.
The Network sponsored two educational workshops in October for parish
leaders and lay staffs, clergy and school principals, and high school campus
ministers. (See report in next edition of The Valley Catholic.)