Catholic Teachings on Immigration Reform

by Sue Weishar, Ph.D.

On January 2, the Obama administration announced a rule change to allow undocumented immigrant spouses and children of U.S. citizens who entered the country without inspection to stay in the country while they ask the government to waive three- or ten-year bans on returning to the United States. Immigrants who get the waiver will still need to leave the country to complete visa paperwork, but will be able to leave without fear of being barred from returning for three or ten years. The rule, first proposed last year, goes into effect in March.

In testimony submitted to a Senate subcommittee on December 12, 2012, the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) described how zero-tolerance policies that heavily use suspension and expulsion and police officers contributes to a “school to prison pipeline” that funnels students into the criminal justice system.  The policies disproportionately impact students of color and students with disabilities in the Gulf South region.  The SPLC also filed complaints in Alabama, Florida, Louisiana, and Mississippi.  In Meridian, MS, students are routinely arrested and transported to the juvenile detention

The El Paso, Texas City Council approved an ordinance to regulate payday and car title loan businesses.  El Paso is the fourth city in Texas to adopt such an ordinance after Dallas, Austin, and San Antonio.  The ordinance limits payday loans to twenty percent of the borrower’s gross monthly income and auto-title loans to either 3 percent of the borrower’s gross annual income or 70 percent of the vehicle’s value.  The ordinance limits installments to four and rollovers and renewals to three. 

Social Security critical to income of millions of Americans

By Fred Kammer, SJ

Over twenty-one million Americans—including 8.7 million women—are saved from poverty each year, 2.6 million of them in the Gulf South.  Without Social Security, the poverty rate among those 65 and older would be 43.6 percent; with Social Security it drops to 8.7 percent.   Overall, almost 90 percent of elderly Americans receive some of their family income from Social Security: 38.3 million elders.

On November 3, the Birmingham Civil Rights Institute awarded the Fred L. Shuttlesworth Human Rights Award to Bryan Stevenson, Executive Director of the Equal Justice Initiative for bringing public attention to discrimination against racial minorities and being an effective voice for equal treatment in the justice system.   The Fred L. Shuttlesworth Award was instituted in 2002 to honor and extend the legacy of Fred L. Shuttlesworth for voting rights and equality in America.  Previous award recipients include Mr.

A candlelight vigil entitled “We are One Mississippi” was held at the University of Mississippi on November 7, 2012 in response to a campus disturbance against President Obama’s re-election.  The vigil was organized to celebrate the University’s progress for racial equality made since James Meredith was escorted into the University over 50 years ago on October 1, 1962.

On November 9, 2012, the Supreme Court said that it will review the key provision of the 1965 Voting Rights Act, the “pre-clearance” provision, that requires states with a history of discrimination to gain approval of the Justice Department or a Federal Court for any proposed changes.  Congress renewed the Voting Rights Act in 2006, by a nearly unanimous vote, finding that ongoing discrimination demanded renewal.  The enduring import of the Voting Rights Act was demonstrated in the 2012 election when 12 states attempted to limit access to voting for many Americans, including minorities.  Th

On October 26, 2012 in Chart of the Day: The price of inequality, The New Statesman provided a graphic look at the impact of inequality on the United States in comparison with five developed nations—Japan, Sweden, Germany, France, and the United Kingdom.  The results reiterated the thesis of the 2009 book The Spirit Level by Richard Wilkinson and Kate Pickett that rising levels of inequality were leading directly to unhappier, unhealthier societies.  See infographic

An analysis of the 2012 Latino vote

By Sue Weishar, Ph.D.