The US Conference of Catholic Bishops put out a statement speaking to Administration plans for dealing with immigrants (both legal and illegal) in this country. Some of it will disinfranchise children born here in the US who are granted citizenship, and much of it will change the rules on those who are here legally or in the process of seeking asylum (also here legally). Most have committed no criminal acts of any sort and, in fact, pay taxes, work as hard as anyone else in this country (and harder than many!), and add immeasurably to the quality of this country's culture, diversity, and personal richness. The US recognizes that what we did to Japanese-Americans during WWII, is a stain on our county's foundation vision, values, and history. What is happening now in the all-too-apparent name of white supremacy, and less openly, a nationalism that blasphemously goes by the name of "Christan" is neither American nor Christian. I am grateful the Church is speaking out again the injustice and terrible harm being done to our brother and sisters in the name of the United States.
WASHINGTON - Newly released details show how the Administration plans to double federal immigration detention capacity, spending an estimated $38.3 billion from last year’s reconciliation bill to implement a new detention model by the end of Fiscal Year 2026. This amounts to nearly fifty times the annual budget for the entire immigration court system and almost five times the funding provided this year to operate the federal prison system. The plan partly entails opening eight “mega‑centers,” each of which would be capable of detaining 7,000 to 10,000 people. Aside from the internment camps used to incarcerate Japanese Americans in the 1940s, such facilities have no precedent in American history.
In response, Bishop Brendan J. Cahill, chairman of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ (USCCB) Committee on Migration, urged the Administration and Congress to pursue a more just approach:
“These plans are deeply troubling. The federal government does not have a positive track record when it comes to detaining large numbers of people, especially families, and the proposed scale of these facilities is difficult to comprehend. The private prison industry is who stands to gain the most from this supercharging of immigration detention.
“Last November, my brother bishops and I
unequivocally opposed the indiscriminate mass deportation of people and raised concerns about existing conditions in detention centers. We specifically highlighted a lack of access to pastoral care for detainees. On many occasions, we have also
opposed the expansion of family detention, recognizing its harmful impacts on children in particular.
“The thought of holding thousands of families in massive warehouses should challenge the conscience of every American. Whatever their immigration status, these are human beings created in the image and likeness of God, and this is a moral inflection point for our country. We implore the Administration and Congress to lead with right reason, abandon this misuse of taxpayer funds, and to instead pursue a more just approach to immigration enforcement that truly respects human dignity, the sanctity of families, and religious liberty.”
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