On June 25, The United States Supreme Court ruled 6-3 that the federal government can terminate Temporary Protected Status for about 350,000 Haitians and Syrians who have been living in the U.S. Bishop Brendan Cahill, bishop of the Diocese of Victoria, Texas and chairman of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Committee on Migration, issued a statement in response to the decision.
Bishop Cahill said, “Revoking the legal status of hundreds of thousands of people residing in our country creates a moral crisis when returning to their country of origin is not a safe or reasonable option. If we are truly to affirm the God-given dignity of every human person, we as a nation cannot turn a blind eye to such an injustice and the impossible choices it will create for families and communities.”
Read the entire USCCB statement here.
The USCCB’s Committee on Migration has encouraged recent bipartisan efforts in Congress to pass legislation that would require the Secretary of Homeland Security to extend Haiti’s TPS designation. In January, Bishop Cahill was also joined by his fellow chairman in calling on the administration to extend TPS for Haitians.
Last week, Bishop Edward Malesic and Auxiliary Bishop Michael Woost joined the Catholic Conference of Ohio in a statement on the same topic. Issued on June 22, “America at 250: Freedom and the Common Good,” noted that Haitians in Ohio were among those awaiting the Supreme Court decision on their TPS.
The CCO wrote, “Welcoming immigrants and refugees represents the Christian ideals our country stands on. The denial of a dignified life for law-abiding families fleeing an unstable home and contributing to the common good signifies how much easier it is to declare that we are ‘one nation under God’ rather than to actually do the will of our Heavenly Father.” (Mt 7:21)
They also asked Catholics everywhere “to pray for America at 250 years and to reflect on our responsibility as citizens and followers of Jesus Christ.”
