We value the ministry of presence as an important dimension of the gospel of peace. In the hope of continuing our tradition of gracious hospitality, we welcome others to our communities and also to try to be present to people in their own situations. Constitution #18

A humanitarian crisis of enormous proportions is unfolding on the southern border of the U.S. as tens of thousands of unaccompanied children and mothers with babies in arms flee the gangs and state violence in the central American countries of El Salvador, Honduras and Guatemala. This crisis has been building since 2005.

One can only imagine what fear, what threats, what violence parents would witness that would cause those parents to risk sending their children away - often alone - through strange countries to seek a better life or to at least try to preserve their young ones' lives.

The UN High Commissioner for Refugees, initiated interviews with 404 refugee children. There were over 100 each from El Salvador, Honduras Guatemala and Mexico, selected to represent the larger group.

•  58% of the 404 children indicated they were forcibly displaced because they suffered or faced harms that indicated a potential or actual need for international protection.
• 48% shared how they had been personally affected by violence from organized, armed, criminal actors, including drug cartels, gangs and State officials,
• 22% of the children reported suffering violence in the home from caretakers,
• Children from Mexico alone reported attempts to recruit them for human trafficking.

The UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) has determined that there is legitimate cause for full investigation of the claims made by the children for asylum, and for the protection of these children under international law. The UN estimates that of the children and families who arrive at the US border, 60% have legitimate claims to asylum under the 1951 Convention relating to the Status of Refugees and its 1967 Protocol.

The U.S. Catholic Bishops, in a statement issued by Catholics Confront Global Poverty declared that the children "have a right to migrate, but also the right not to migrate and to meet their needs where they are."

The U.S. the only country receiving asylum claims. Nicaragua, Panama, Costa Rica, Belize, Canada and Mexico itself have had requests for asylum increase 432% since 2009. The numbers of unaccompanied children apprehended at the U.S. border have been increasing from 5,369 in Fiscal Year (FY 2009, to 36,174 in FY2013. 70% of those apprehended are from Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador. The number of children reaching the U.S. border this year is expected to be 90,000.

President Obama while admitting a need to investigate legitimate claims for asylum has asked for an expedited process of removal. This can be seen at best as a political move to ease tensions in an effort to salvage any hope of immigration reform. Hillary Clinton has said the children should be deported. But to deport children without an adequate investigation into asylum claims would be a violation of international law. Most congressional Republicans want the border sealed and expedited removal.

Then he took a little child and put it among them [his disciples]; and taking it into his arms, he said to them, "Whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me, and whoever welcomes me, welcomes not me but the one who sent me." Mark 9: 36-37. (NRSV)

Our traditions recall the migration of Jacob's offspring into Egypt seeking food only to find themselves enslaved. We came to know that God hears the cry of the poor. We recall Joseph and Mary fleeing the Promised Land when violence threatened their child, Joseph the dreamer was able to provide protection for his family who were eventually able to return to the Promised Land. And we know of the many sacrifices of Mother Clare in feeding the poor Irish she encountered while many of them were also forced to send their own children away to England or to the U.S. to seek a better life than the starvation they faced in Ireland.

This congregation had its origin in the founder's response to the social concerns and needs of the time. Deeply moved by the sufferings of the poor and oppressed people, Margaret Anna Cusack sought ways to share her gifts with them:

"...It did matter to me a great deal in view of our common humanity, and in view of my love for the poor, that I should do all that I could for those whom he had loved so well."

                                                                                                       Constitution #4

How can we as sisters and associates respond to this crisis of children on our borders, being detained and rejected by so many? Do we see Christ in the faces of these young refugees? Are we moved to action by their unjust suffering?

But what actions shall we take?

Certainly, we can lift them up in prayer each day asking for the compassion of God to be made manifest in how these young ones are treated. To assist with that you are encouraged to find the prayer/reflection prepared by Kate Chambers for a small group of sisters and associates that have been meeting by Skype. This prayer was created to help that group's members prepare for the Chapter and has been very powerful. 

The U.S. Bishops have asked us to contact our legislators and ask the following:

•  Oppose the Obama Administration's request for "fast track" authority to speed the removal of unaccompanied children back to their countries without due process protections;
•  Provide adequate funding to protect unaccompanied children arriving in the U.S. and respond to their basic needs, including legal representation while their immigration case is pending;
•  Address the root causes that compel children to flee their homes by providing robust funding for targeted development programs in Central America and Mexico and a comprehensive regional plan to address this issue; and, 
•  Enable the safe, orderly return and reintegration of children who are deported to their home communities.

You can find your Senators and Representative's phone number at this link by entering your zip code: http://www.opencongress.org/people/zipcodelookup 

We can add our voices to the many on social media, or in petitions asking for humane treatment of these and all children. Let our community raise a prophetic voice in defense of these defenseless little ones.

NETWORK suggests five ways to take action:

• Find them shelter. The Administration has told us that there is a desperate need for safe facilities to provide shelter for children until they can be discharged to a sponsor to await judicial proceedings. Read the letter from FEMA and facilities requirements, in case you know of a place that may be suitable. If you can provide shelter, email FEMA and let them know as much detail as possible about the facilities, i.e.. location, type of facility, ownership, utilities, square footage, and a point of contact.
• Advocate for them with Congress. Ask for additional funding for the Office of Refugee Resettlement, and insist that we protect these children. Share these facts with your friends, and ask them to take action as well. (See points made by the bishops above.)
• Schedule a lobby visit with your member of Congress during the August Recess to talk more about this issue.
• Seek out local opportunities with organizations like Catholic Charities, the San Diego Immigrant Rights Consortium, or other groups working with unaccompanied minors or other refugees and asylum seekers to volunteer or provide much-needed donations of items to provide for children and families.
• Share your story! Tell us [NETWORK]what your experiences are working with vulnerable populations and the unaccompanied minors. We are eager to share stories with our contacts in Congress and the Administration. Email us at [email protected].

Finally, consider donating to Catholic Relief Services that is working hard in the countries of origin to eliminate the conditions that cause the children to flee.  

In facing the challenges of our times and uniting with the church's concern for peace, we respond with the flexibility required to by changing needs and remain open to engaging in new forms of ministry. Constitution # 27

In Peace,

Frank McCann, CSJP-A