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Cardinal Tobin to Join Hundreds of Catholic Leaders Calling for an End to Child and Family Detention

BY ISN STAFF | September 3, 2019

NEWARK, NJ – On Wednesday, Sept. 4 in Newark, NJ, the Ignatian Solidarity Network will join a coalition of Catholic sisters, priests, brothers, lay Catholic advocates and immigrants, including the Archbishop of the Catholic Archdiocese of Newark, Cardinal Joseph Tobin, to continue a  strategic campaign to pressure the Trump administration and Congress to “stop the inhumanity.”   

Cardinal Tobin Catholic Leaders End Family and Child Detention

Cardinal Tobin [image via the Archdiocese of Newark]

The campaign calls for an end to the detention of children and families—which is contrary to Gospel values as written in Matthew chapter 25, where we are called to welcome the stranger, feed the hungry, and care for the sick.

The leaders will gather for a prayerful assembly before processing to the ICE office at the Federal Building for a vigil, which will include personal testimonies from Catholic leaders, clergy, and long-time advocates based in New Jersey, as well as family members who have been impacted by our nation’s immoral immigration policies. As a part of the event, several Catholic leaders from many different organizations will engage in nonviolent civil disobedience and risk arrest to draw attention to this moral crisis.

This action grew out of a similar event which took place in July at the Russell Rotunda in Washington, D.C., where 70 Catholic leaders and supporters were arrested as a call to action. 

Catholic Day of Action detention children families

Catholic leaders in the Senate Rotunda at the July Catholic Day of Action for Immigrant Children.

Newark was chosen as the site of this second action because of regional energy flowing out of the D.C. event and New Jersey Catholics having advocated for an end to immigration detention for more than 20 years. 

children immigration detention

Children who have died while in immigration detention.

“The Ignatian Solidarity Network is committed to ongoing work with this coalition of national Catholic social justice organizations, mobilizing the Ignatian network to join fellow Catholics in taking public action to speak clearly against inhumane treatment of children as a violation of human dignity and rights, contrary to core Catholic values and human rights.”

The Ignatian Solidarity Network will be streaming the event via Facebook Live beginning at 10am ET/7am PT. Livestream can be accessed by visiting igsol.net/fb

National and local organizers include Sisters of Mercy of the Americas; Leadership Conference of Women Religious; Faith in Action; Faith in Public Life; Franciscan Action Network; Pax Christi USA; Conference of Major Superiors of Men; Columban Center for Advocacy and Outreach; Maryknoll Office for Global Concerns; Ignatian Solidarity Network; National Advocacy Center of the Sisters of the Good Shepherd; Stuart Center: Society of the Sacred Heart; NETWORK Lobby for Catholic Social Justice; Action 21; Cosecha; Faith in NJ; First Friends NJ/NY; Maryknoll Affiliates of the NE; Haiti Solidarity Network of the Northeast; Pax Christi NJ; St. Aedan Migrant Center; The Center for Undocumented Students; and Congregation of Sisters of St. Joseph of Peace. 

3 replies
  1. Theresa Blumfelder
    Theresa Blumfelder says:

    While these good Catholic protesters are at it , why don’t they also condemn the Attorney General of the US, who is part of a racist,.misogynist, group of Catholics called OPUS DEI, who, as he does works to promote our Racist , misogynist policies of this current president of the USA

    Reply

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