AMERICA/UNITED STATES - Bishops continue call for immigration reform in the country, on the first anniversary of the worksite raid in Iowa that led to great suffering and division

Washington (Agenzia Fides) - To commemorate the first anniversary (today, May 12) of the Postville, Iowa, immigration worksite enforcement action, Bishop John C. Wester, chairman of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) Committee on Migration released a statement recalling the humanitarian cost of such actions and calling, once again, for the reform of national immigration policies.
“Since that raid in Postville, Iowa, larger raids have occurred, but the precedent set at Postville and the accompanying compassionate response by that small Iowa community and its people of faith underscore the humanitarian costs of workplace immigration raids as well as the need for reform of our nation’s immigration policies,” Bishop Wester affirms in his statement.
The Bishop, in union with all the Catholic Bishops of the country recall that the government certainly has the right and responsibility to enforce laws, however, “worksite enforcement raids do not solve the challenge of illegal immigration.” On the contrary, “they lead to the separation of U.S. families and the destruction of immigrant communities.” In fact, the Iowa raid resulted in “family separation, immense suffering, denial of due process rights and community division.”
“Our religious and social response to such harm to our God-given human dignity is based on Scriptures, which call believers to welcome the newcomers among us, to treat the alien with respect and charity, and to provide pastoral and humanitarian assistance to individuals and their families,” the President of the US Bishops' Committee on Migration said. The Postville episode last year is “a disturbing reminder of the need to repair the nation’s broken immigration policies.”
The Bishop concludes his message with an appeal to all Catholics and members of other faiths, and all persons of good will “to commemorate the Postville raid of May 12, 2008, by remembering in their prayers those hurt by the raid and to work for comprehensive immigration reform so that others will not face similar pain and cruelty in the future.” (RG) (Agenzia Fides 12/5/2009)