July 18 is the Catholic Day of Action for Immigrant Children. Take time to learn more about the crisis at our border by reading this practical overview and theological reflection on the condition of detention camps at our southern border - our latest Just Act, “‘All Problems Solved’? A Call for Perspective and Policy Shift at the U.S. Border.”
The reports of children separated from their parents, sleeping on cement floors, and lacking basic sanitary items, nourishment, and childcare – in the name of national integrity – should distress us all. The privileges and opportunities to which U.S. citizens are entitled should not be protected at the expense of any child’s rights. If the great nation of the United States must retain its prominence by traumatizing children and families, then we need to reevaluate our definition of greatness. We should use our position of power to act on behalf of those who are vulnerable and marginalized, and should strive to live up to George Washington’s vision of America’s greatness: “I had always hoped that this land might become a safe and agreeable asylum to the virtuous and persecuted part of [humankind], to whatever nation they might belong.”
