imm protestOn February 22nd, 2014 the Student Summit on Immigration Reform brought together student groups and faculty from Catholic schools in the Chicago region for a day of organizing and strategy. The program included exciting keynotes and breakout sessions on Messaging/, Lobbying/Politics + Policy, Organizing Fundamentals: Coalition-building. Participants were also invited to network and build alliances with other students and activists also passionate about advancing immigration reform.

Resources

Keynotes

Sister Mary Ellen Lacy, D.C.
Lobbyist – NETWORK
Sister Mary Ellen Lacy works as a lobbyist on various issues at NETWORK. She is a Daughter of Charity and a lobbyist who focuses primarily on Immigration, Healthcare, Nutrition and Gulf Coast Restoration issues.  (See continued bio below)

Veronica Soto
DREAMer & Immigration Rights Activist
At the age of four, Veronica was brought over to the United States from her hometown Acapulco Guerrero, Mexico. Although she doesn’t remember much about her life in Mexico, her culture is still a very important part of her life. She grew up on the east side of Aurora, and graduated from East Aurora High School in 2012. She currently lives in Wicker Park and is in her second year at DePaul University, in hopes of receiving her Bachelor of Science in Community and Public Health. (See continued bio below)

Father Kevin Flaherty, S.J.
Director, First Studies Program at Loyola University Chicago
Kevin Flaherty, S.J. is the director of the Jesuit First Studies Program at Loyola University. He worked for 25 years in Peru in social, pastoral, and educational projects. He has lived and worked in the United States in Hispanic neighborhoods.

Speakers

Sister Patricia Murphy, R.S.M. & Sister JoAnn Persch, R.S.M.
Peace and Justice Coordinators – Sisters of Mercy
Sister Patricia Murphy and Sister JoAnn Persch have both been educators and administrators throughout their careers. Currently Sister JoAnn and Sister Patricia serve as Peace and Justice Coordinators for the Sisters of Mercy in Chicago’s WestMidwest community. Their ministry includes advocacy for comprehensive immigration reform, and they have a special concern for those who are being detained and/or deported. Every Friday morning, the Sisters pray at the deportation staging center while people are being deported. That prayer has led them to establish a court watch program in the immigration court. Initial attempts to enter the deportation center and the McHenry County Jail failed which led to them working with the Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights and the Interfaith Committee for Detained Immigrants to have a bill passed in the Illinois Legislature allowing access to detainees for pastoral workers.

Since the bill has been implemented, the Sisters have trained pastoral workers and developed teams to go into the McHenry County Jail to meet with detained immigrants each week. Along with the Illinois Coalition and the Interfaith Committee, the Sisters pray with those being deported on their bus rides to the airport, and support the families who come to say goodbye at the detention center. Currently the Sisters are working on the Post-Detention Accompaniment Program for men and women who are released but have no support until they can start life over.

Veronica Soto
DREAMer & Immigration Rights Activist
At the age of four, Veronica was brought over to the United States from her hometown Acapulco Guerrero, Mexico. Although she doesn’t remember much about her life in Mexico, her culture is still a very important part of her life. She grew up on the east side of Aurora, and graduated from East Aurora High School in 2012. She currently lives in Wicker Park and is in her second year at DePaul University, in hopes of receiving her Bachelor of Science in Community and Public Health. Veronica hopes to become a case manager at a community health center or an organizer for a public health campaign. She is currently interning at the Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights where she works on maintaining a support hotline for the immigrant community. She loves every aspect of her life because she is fulfilling a lot personal goals she’s had since high school. Veronica also loves eating deep dish pizza and listening to the Arctic Monkeys. If you see her on the street or in class say “hi” because she is a social butterfly.

Sister Mary Ellen Lacy, D.C.
Lobbyist – NETWORK
Sister Mary Ellen Lacy works as a lobbyist on various issues at NETWORK. She is a Daughter of Charity and a lobbyist who focuses primarily on Immigration, Healthcare, Nutrition and Gulf Coast Restoration issues. She is a licensed registered nurse, nursing home administrator and attorney. Immediately prior to joining the Network staff in August of 2011, Sister Mary Ellen provided legal services to impoverished victims of Katrina and the Gulf Coast Oil Spill and represented numerous individuals before the Social Security Administration in Alabama. She also has an extensive work history in the non-for-profit acute and long term healthcare industry.

Father Kevin Flaherty, S.J.
Director, First Studies Program at Loyola University Chicago
Kevin Flaherty, S.J. is the director of the Jesuit First Studies Program at Loyola University. He worked for 25 years in Peru in social, pastoral, and educational projects. He has lived and worked in the United States in Hispanic neighborhoods.

Moral Courage Award Recipients

Mark Kuczewski, Ph.D.
Director – Neiswanger Institute for Bioethics and Health Policy
Mark G. Kuczewski, Ph.D., is the Director of the Neiswanger Institute for Bioethics and Health Policy, holds the Father Michael I. English, S.J., Professorship in Medical Ethics, and serves as the founding department chair of the new Department of Medical Education at the Loyola University Chicago Stritch School of Medicine. He is a Past-President of the American Society for Bioethics and Humanities (ASBH). Mark’s current interests include particular attention to the role of culture and spirituality in clinical decision making. He has developed significant scholarship regarding the particular ethical issues in health care related to the recent wave of Latino immigration. Mark has been the point person for the Loyola Stritch School of Medicine’s effort to become a welcoming environment for qualified Dreamer applicants.

Sister Patricia Murphy, RSM & Sister JoAnn Persch, RSM
Peace and Justice Coordinators – Sisters of Mercy
Sister Patricia Murphy and Sister JoAnn Persch have both been educators and administrators throughout their careers. Currently Sister JoAnn and Sister Patricia serve as Peace and Justice Coordinators for the Sisters of Mercy in Chicago’s WestMidwest community. Their ministry includes advocacy for comprehensive immigration reform, and they have a special concern for those who are being detained and/or deported. Every Friday morning, the Sisters pray at the deportation staging center while people are being deported. That prayer has led them to establish a court watch program in the immigration court. Initial attempts to enter the deportation center and the McHenry County Jail failed which led to them working with the Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights and the Interfaith Committee for Detained Immigrants to have a bill passed in the Illinois Legislature allowing access to detainees for pastoral workers.

Since the bill has been implemented, the Sisters have trained pastoral workers and developed teams to go into the McHenry County Jail to meet with detained immigrants each week. Along with the Illinois Coalition and the Interfaith Committee, the Sisters pray with those being deported on their bus rides to the airport, and support the families who come to say goodbye at the detention center. Currently the Sisters are working on the Post-Detention Accompaniment Program for men and women who are released but have no support until they can start life over.

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