What's Happening

November 1, 2019, Adrian, Michigan – While the United States is known as a nation of immigrants, recent federal policies have made it much more difficult for today’s immigrants to obtain permanent resident status, for people from Central America to be granted asylum, and for “Dreamers” who may have only known life in the United States to be safe from deportation.

That was the gist of a presentation October 29, 2019, by immigration attorney Sister Attracta Kelly, OP, JD, Director of the Adrian Dominican Sisters Immigration Assistance Office. Sister Attracta provided background on a number of specific immigration policies, described their current status, and in many cases suggested actions that the public can take to bring about just immigration policies.

Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA)

Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) was a policy built on “prosecutorial discretion,” delaying the deportation of young adults – known as “Dreamers” – who had come into the United States at a very young age with parents who did not have the proper immigration papers, Sister Attracta said. Since 2012, when the DACA act was passed, she said, about 800,000 young adults were granted temporarily relief from the threat of being deported. Former Attorney General Jeff Sessions announced the end of DACA on September 5, 2017.“We’re talking about people – many of whom are very wonderful professional people,” Sister Attracta said. “They have gone to school, held down two jobs, and worked really hard. Many of our DACA people are doctors and physician’s assistants, working where most U.S.-born professionals would not dream of going to work.” Many of the Dreamers have only known life in the United States and could face deportation to their parents’ country of origin, which would be foreign to them. 

“The fate of DACA will be decided by the U.S. Supreme Court,” beginning with arguments on November 12, 2019, Sister Attracta said. “Between now and November 12 we need to pray very, very genuinely from our hearts to open the hearts of the Supreme Court justices so they do what Jesus would do – look at these people as human beings who need to be treated with respect.”

Sister Attracta announced a novena – developed by Sister Kathleen Nolan, OP, Director of the Office of Justice, Peace and Integrity of Creation – that begins on Sunday, November 3, and concludes on Monday, November 11. She also encouraged people who live in the Adrian area to attend a prayer service for Dreamers at 7:00 p.m. Sunday, November 10, 2019, at the St. Joseph campus of Holy Family Parish, 415 Ormsby Street, Adrian.

Asylum

Sister Attracta noted that asylum seekers – especially those from Mexico, Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, and Nicaragua – have been in the news because of changes in the U.S. administration’s asylum policy and its treatment of those who have come to the U.S. border without formal papers.

Asylum is defined by international law as pertaining to “people fleeing persecution in their home country where the government will not or cannot protect them from harm,” Sister Attracta said. Those seeking asylum “must show past persecution or fear of future persecution because of race, religion, nationality, political opinion, or social group,” she said.

The U.S. government no longer allows people seeking asylum to wait in the United States for their court hearing, Sister Attracta said. Instead, they must return to Mexico or apply at a “safe” country closest to their home country. But, Sister Attracta said, while the United States considers Mexico and the Central American countries of Guatemala, Honduras, and El Salvador to be safe, they actually are not. 

It has been the treatment of families seeking asylum that has garnered the most attention, Sister Attracta said. Under the U.S. government’s zero tolerance policy, “all adults crossing the U.S. without proper documentation will be criminally prosecuted,” she said. In the past, such offenses were considered civil rather than criminal violations.

In June 2018, the U.S. policy of separating families at the border and holding children as young as less than a year old in confinement “shocked the world with its cruelty,” Sister Attracta said, adding that the public later learned that this policy had already been in practice a year before it became known. Although the courts ordered that this practice be stopped, many of the children have not yet been reunited with their families, Sister Attracta noted

Sister Attracta encouraged action to bring about immigration reform in the United States:

• Contact your U.S. representative and senator, urging legislation that would ensure that asylum seekers can stay in the United States to await their court hearing.
  
  
• Speak to your legislators on the need to retain the Flores Settlement, which requires that children be kept in as humane a condition as possible and that their time of incarceration be limited.

“Pope Francis urged us to embrace what he terms a ‘culture of encounter,’ face-to-face encounter with others, which challenges us with their pain, their pleas, and their joy,” Sister Attracta said. “The Christian way of life is to pray, be available, and passionately act for the common good. If we respond as Pope Francis calls us, we must look at the root cause of our immigration problem. We must work together to fix our very broken immigration laws.”

Watch Sister Attracta’s complete presentation in the video below.

October 2, 2018, Adrian, Michigan – Sister Attracta Kelly, OP, an immigration lawyer, will offer a public presentation on a newly proposed change in the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) policy that would make it harder for people to get legal status in the United States. She explores the implications of this proposal on Thursday, October 11, 2018, from 6:30 to 8:00 p.m. EDT. All are welcome and encouraged to attend.

LOCATION CHANGE: This event will be held in the Rose Room of the Dominican Life Center, on the Campus of the Adrian Dominican Sisters, 1277 E. Siena Heights Drive in Adrian, Michigan. 

The proposed rule would redefine the concept of a “public charge,” which can disqualify people obtaining legal status. Public charges are immigrants who are or are considered likely to be financially dependent on benefits from the U.S. government. Currently, “public charge” grounds apply only to immigrants who receive or are considered likely to receive cash assistance benefits, such as social security. The new proposal expands the “public charge” grounds to non-monetary benefits, such as food stamps, housing assistance, or Medicaid benefits.  

Once the proposal is formally published in the Federal Register, the public will have 60 days to submit their comments for or against the proposal. 

Learn more about the proposal and its implications for U.S. immigrants and submit comments as soon as possible. Those who cannot attend in person can watch Sister Attracta’s presentation via live stream on the Adrian Dominican Sisters website, www.adriandominicans.org/LiveStream.aspx.