Comprehensive Immigration Reform

Our Catholic faith grounds us in the realization that each person has inherent dignity because he or she is created in the image and likeness of God. As children of God, we are treasured and valuable as we are. Because of this, all our national policies, including our immigration policies, should respect and protect the dignity of each person.

Immigration in the United States is a complex system fraught with misunderstanding and suspicion, but one thing is clear: the U.S. immigration system is badly broken.

NETWORK believes that comprehensive immigration reform is badly needed and will benefit our nation in many ways.

In response to the clear requirements of our faith, NETWORK is advocating for:

• Realistic path to earned legalization for people in the U.S. without status

• Effective program for new permanent resident petitioners

• Plan for addressing applicant backlogs for permanent residence, with family unity as a priority

• Effective program for temporary workers

• Restoration of due process protections and reformed detention policies for those detained in the immigration system

• More emphasis on fixing “pushes” for immigration that result from U.S. trade policies and global economic conditions; capacity to track immigration patterns in the U.S.

“You must not oppress the stranger; you know how a stranger feels, for you lived as strangers in the land of Egypt.” -- Exodus 23: 9