Missionary Sisters of the Sacred Heart of Jesus

“Your Case is Approved!”

July 23, 2024

Screenshot

As an immigration lawyer, I have learned the immigrant community often faces barriers on the long journey towards status in the US. Though our clients may spend years here without a status, one thing is clear for most people who walk through our doors: home is here. I recently worked with a client who has called New York home for over 21 years. As a child, she was eligible to join the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program (DACA) and was part of the program for about 14 years. However, DACA is not a permanent status. So last year, we were excited to check off her last requirements to be eligible for residency. We filed an application for residency through marriage to her US citizen spouse. This month, I accompanied her to her residency interview. We faced a few challenges, which were expected. But finally, after waiting almost 22 years and about 4 more hours at the USCIS office that morning, the USCIS officer said the words this client had long awaited: “your case is approved.”

My client walked out of the interview with tears of joy coming down her face, and she embraced her husband, who was just as relieved and elated for her. This client had lived in the shadows for years, and then as a DACA recipient, she lived in a gray area of the immigration world. But at last, she could exhale with the knowledge that the case was over. The morning before the interview, she had set up a plan with her family. If she texted them the word “taquiza”, that meant the interview went well and they would celebrate that night with a big celebratory Mexican dinner. That afternoon, my client and her husband texted her entire family. I can only imagine how great that taquiza was on that joyful day of celebration together with her community.

Each immigration story deserves a victory like this. It goes without saying that our current immigration system can often be exclusive rather than inclusive, othering the immigrant rather than welcoming the immigrant. As U.S. citizens, we bear the responsibility and power to advocate for the immigrant. This can be done in several ways: urge our representatives to support meaningful change to our existing system; financially supporting organizations who serve the immigrant community; or joining advocates in fight for change. We have the collective job to create a more human-focused, just, and equitable immigration system, where we can see more immigrants thrive. It is my sincere hope that this one client story will inspire you to join the fight for immigrant rights today. Though this client’s case is closed, there are still countless more families waiting to hear those words: “your case is approved.”

25th Anniversary Celebration of CIS-NYC

July 17, 2024

Cabrini Immigrant Services – New York City (CIS-NYC) is thrilled to share the highlights of our recent fundraiser held on June 15th, marking the 25th anniversary of Cabrini Immigrant Services of New York City. This event was a celebration of our commitment to immigrant rights and the impact we have made over the years.

We had the honor of highlighting two honorees dear to the CIS-NYC community: Sr. Pietrina Raccuglia, MSC, and Alex Avitabile, who received the “Heart of Cabrini” award. This award symbolizes the continuation of Mother Cabrini’s legacy, a mission that both honorees have embodied through their work and lives. Sr. Pietrina Raccuglia, MSC, has been a longstanding advocate for immigrants and has upheld CIS-NYC’s mission through her founding of our organization. Alex Avitabile, a champion in housing justice and an advocate for immigrant rights, has been a generous supporter of CIS-NYC and an exemplary recipient of the “Heart of Cabrini” award.

The celebration continued with food, drinks, and a performance by La Cumbiamba, which had everyone dancing and on their feet. We give thanks to our generous sponsors, dedicated supporters, and the wonderful community that makes our work possible.
Account continues on next page.
We are also excited to share photos from the event taken by Leo Sorel, capturing the joyous moments and highlights of the evening.

You can view the photos: https://cis-nyc.org/celebrate-25-photos. Additionally, we have a special video created by Darcy Thompson commemorating our 25-year journey and highlighting our work. Watch the video here: https://cis-nyc.org.

Here’s to 25 more years of service and impact!

Future of Anti-human Trafficking Bills sought by Catholics Unclear amid Wider Immigration Debate

June 19, 2024

~ by Kate Scanlon, OSV News for Global Sisters Report

A trio of bills to combat human trafficking sought by Catholic advocates faces an uncertain future in Congress amid a wider debate over immigration policy.At a June 6 briefing at the Capitol, representatives from the Alliance to End Human Trafficking and the National Advocacy Center of the Sisters of the Good Shepherd pointed to three bills they said would aid efforts to combat the practice: HR 5856, the Frederick Douglass Trafficking Victims Prevention and Protection Reauthorization Act of 2023; HR 1325, the Asylum Seeker Work Authorization Act of 2023; and HR 6145, Immigration Court Efficiency and Children’s Court Act of 2023.

Sister Brigid Lawlor, founder of the National Advocacy Center of the Sisters of the Good Shepherd, or NAC, and a sister of that community, said the issues of human trafficking and forced migration are closely linked.

“We have seen firsthand how traffickers prey on those forced to flee their homes by circumstances beyondtheir control,” she said in remarks at the briefing. “We all know what they are, could be floods, famine or gang violence, domestic violence, poverty, persecution and political corruption.”

Ending human trafficking, she said, “is a bipartisan issue with bipartisan solutions,” pointing to both Republican and Democratic staffers in attendance. “We need legislative action to address these particular trafficking vulnerabilities.” (Photo: OSV News/CNS file, Ruby Thomas, The Record)

The House in February approved the Frederick Douglass Trafficking Victims Prevention and Protection Reauthorization Act with a broad, bipartisan majority. The bill was sent to the Senate and referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations, which has not yet moved to advance it. That legislation also is supported by the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops.

The Asylum Seeker Work Authorization Act and its Senate companion, S 255, would shorten the waiting period for asylees to be granted work permits, allowing them to seek employment and reducing their vulnerability to traffickers, supporters said. The USCCB also supports that legislation. The House and Senate versions of that legislation have yet to be taken up by their relevant committees.

The bipartisan Immigration Court Efficiency and Children’s Court Act, which supporters say would reduce the immigration court backlog and strengthen due process rights for children in that process, also has yet to be taken up by the House Judiciary Committee.

But key provisions of that legislation were among the Biden administration’s December 2023 executive action on immigration, establishing separate dockets focused on the adjudication of unaccompanied children’s removal proceedings. Rep. Dan Goldman, D-N.Y., praised that move in a December statement as “welcome progress” but argued “we must build on this effort from the Executive Branch by passing my bipartisan Children’s Court Act to codify the creation of a separate Children’s Court into law.”

Congressional staffers in the House and Senate who spoke with OSV News about the bills’ prospects were unable to provide information about a timeline for advancing them, with one suggesting that any legislation dealing with immigration is getting caught up in wider debates over the border, even if the items have nothing to do with the border.

An Update on U.S. Immigration Policies

June 13, 2024

At the end of February, after President Biden’s bipartisan bill collapsed when Republicans backed away from the agreement, the President reportedly told the National Governors Association he was exploring executive actions. The Bill would have, in theory, restricted illegal border crossings, made it more difficult to apply for asylum and speed up deportations while simultaneously making more visas available legally.

Since this time there has been an executive action, announced last Tuesday, that bars migrants crossing the border illegally from seeking asylum — with some limited exceptions. Instead, they would be turned away immediately. The action and accompanying rule from the Biden administration allows the president to suspend asylum claims in between ports of entry when there is an average of 2,500 crossings a day over a seven-day period. That threshold, administration officials said, has already been hit over the past week.

The average daily illegal crossings have for years surpassed that threshold, peaking at over 8,000 last December, according to The Department of Homeland Security.
The surge driving those record-breaking crossings reflects a worldwide rise in migration over the last five years, driven by factors such as the uneven economic recovery from the pandemic and climate change, according to Colleen Putzel-Kavanaugh, an associate policy analyst at the Migration Policy Institute

Under a pandemic-era restriction, which was lifted last year, federal authorities expelled hundreds of thousands of migrants encountered at the US southern border.
When crossings exceed a daily average over the course of a week, the president will have the authority to shut down the border in between ports of entry. Once the shutdown is in effect, DHS secretary Alejandro Mayorkas can reopen the border once average crossings have fallen below 1,500 for seven consecutive days. That determination allows the border to reopen 14 days later.

There will still be a number of exceptions, including for unaccompanied children, some victims of trafficking, migrants facing acute medical emergencies or imminent threats to their safety. Migrants who also have an appointment at a port of entry via Custom and Border Protection’s smartphone app will still be processed.

People who cross the border unlawfully will be deemed ineligible for asylum absent of compelling circumstances, and they will only be referred to an asylum officer under specific circumstances. Migrants who are screened by an asylum officer will also face higher standards than what was previously used to determine fear or the intention to seek asylum. Some migrants could be removed immediately from the U.S. in a matter of hours or days. These migrants could also face a five-year ban on reentering the country, as well as potential criminal prosecution.

The actions Biden announced last week are expected to face legal challenges, just as the Trump administration did when relying on the same presidential authority to make sweeping changes to the immigration system. The president’s officials said they included “important humanitarian and legal changes” in their implementation of the authority. But they also said they’re prepared to defend the policy changes in court.
The American Civil Liberties Union announced that it would challenge the Biden administration’s policies in court, noting that the actions “take the same approach as the Trump administration’s asylum ban.”

They Journeyed Many Miles to Honor All Immigrants

June 13, 2024

In the spirit of Mother Frances Xavier Cabrini, this year Cabrini Immigrant Services of NYC joined the 21st Annual Migrant Trail Walk. This is a 75-mile walk from Sásabe, Mexico to Tucson, Arizona which concluded on Sunday, June 2nd. Ivonne Moreno-Rodriguez, Director of Social Services at CIS-NYC, and David Rodriguez joined 36 other humanitarian workers to commemorate migrants who have lost their lives traveling across the US-Mexico border. Ivonne and David walked between 6 and 16 miles per day for a week to advocate for humane border policies and to honor our Cabrini clients and all immigrants who have crossed and continue crossing.

Here in the United States, more than 8,000 people (men, women and children) have lost their lives crossing the U.S.-Mexico border since the initiation of border deterrence policies in the 1990s. In the past year, 191 remains were found in the Arizona desert. Participants carried a white cross with the names of migrants who died in the desert. Other people carried a cross with the name “desconocido/a” (Spanish for “unknown”) that represents the remains of a person that has not yet been identified.

CIS-NYC: Well-Received Support Group Concludes

May 23, 2024

The first cycle of Cabrini Immigrant Services of NYC’s 2024 support group “Voces de Mujeres” ended last week. We held 13 sessions where participants talked about forgiveness, self-care, grief, domestic violence, and healthy romantic relationships, among other topics.

Seventy-eight women attended at least 1 group, and 38 women attended at least 3 groups. Women shared that the group helped them in their healing process and to love and care for themselves. A client stated that “it helped me to trust myself and to recognize my strengths and to strengthen my weaknesses. I have learned a lot from the stories of my peers from the group.” Another stated that she learned to “love [her]self, take care of [her]self, to give [her]self, time.”

Thank you to our great group leaders Gloria Ivonne Moreno-Rodriguez, LCSW and Yaniris Ortiz. The next cycle will start in June.

SPRING Brings Lots of Activities to CIS-NYC

May 1, 2024

On April 20th, CIS-NYC’s Social Services Program hosted a lunch for 21 of our families (31 adults and 21 children). The families enjoyed a delicious lunch and participated in group activities. Clients shared their immigration journeys, their proudest moments, and challenges in their lives. It was beautiful to see our community members connecting deeply, supporting one another, and enjoying each other’s company. They were sharing their joy at the opportunity to connect for days afterwards in our group chats! Thank you to our wonderful Social Services staff for organizing this event: Sr. Yolanda Flores, MSC, Yaniris Ortiz, Tiburcio Segoviano, Laylani Rosario and Ivonne Moreno-Rodriguez.

On April 23rd, CIS-NYC hosted a screening of the Mother Cabrini Health Foundation’s short film, “Our Larger Community: Embracing New York’s New Immigrants,” which features one of our community members (and former staff member), Brenda. We were joined by staff, volunteers, partners, donors, and members of the local community who enjoyed some refreshments, viewed the film, and engaged in a panel discussion with some of our staff.

Thank you to Javier Ramirez-Baron, Dalilah Negrete, Yaniris Ortiz, and Amelia Scdoris for sharing about your work. And a big thank you to the Mother Cabrini Health Foundation staff for joining us to share about the film! You can view the film here: https://film.cabrinihealth.org/

CIS-NYC recently released our 2023 Annual Report, which outlines our work over the course of 2023 and features many beautiful client stories. You can view the report here: https://cis-nyc.org/annual-report-2023

CABRINI Film to Debut on March 8th International Women’s Day

March 6, 2024

In celebration of Women’s History Month and International Women’s Day, the long-awaited and much-anticipated CABRINI movie will make its debut tomorrow in theaters across the United States.

The story of our patroness, Mother Cabrini, is being brought to life through a film directed by Alejandro Monteverde and Executive Producers. J. Eustace Wolfington and Eduardo Verástegui.

The movie tells the story of Mother Cabrini, who after witnessing disease and poverty in the slums of New York, embarks on a daring journey to persuade the hostile New York City mayor to provide housing and healthcare for hundreds of orphaned children.

Cabrini film producer Jonathan Sanger said he wants [people] to keep this thought in mind as they view the film:
“The lesson of the movie is that we all need to do more. She became the [patron] saint of immigrants and we’re living in a situation and a time where immigration is a huge issue worldwide. The movie is very contemporary…it’s about exactly what’s happening today, as much as it was a lot about what was happening at the turn of the century.” ~ WKBW 7 ABC Buffalo

To watch a trailer of the film, click here

Leadership Training for Advocacy

February 1, 2024

In recent months, Cabrini Immigrant Services-NYC (CIS-NYC’s) Justice for Immigrants Program (JFI) has been actively engaged in advocacy and community-building initiatives.

Six JFI members successfully completed a four-part leadership training program, where they worked to develop skills, such as sharing personal narratives for media engagement. Following the first workshop, our members went to a rally where three members were interviewed by local press and PBS on the topic of right-to-shelter laws.

The second workshop focused on government structures and legislative influence, ending with a trip to Albany for the New York Immigration Coalition’s member congress, where JFI members spoke with state senators and assembly members on issues like language access and housing vouchers. One of our members spoke at the press conference, giving her testimony on the importance of passing the Working Families Tax Credit.

This month JFI also took part in national advocacy, visiting Washington DC to support asylum laws with twelve of our members.
JFI members have shown their commitment to community involvement through their participation in membership meetings and workshops, including a writing workshop with Uptown Stories where members shared immigration stories with their children. Looking forward, JFI has plans for two visits to Albany this month to advocate for campaigns that are important to our membership. We are excited to share more of our experiences and photos!

CIS Hosts Parenting Workshop

January 31, 2024

Cabrini Immigrant Services (CIS), Dobbs Ferry, NY, offered a workshop for parents of toddlers. Betsy Suarez, LMHC, presented: “Effective Strategies: How to Get Your Children to Listen to You More Consistently.”

Our clients from CIS as well as some of the asylum seekers from neighboring towns joined us for the workshop. They discussed achievable goals when raising young children and different ways of achieving the goals. As a group, they discussed what worked with their child and what needed improvement. Betsy assured them to be patient with themselves. She reminded them that no one is an expert.

While the parents were attending the workshop, our social work intern kept the toddlers entertained with puzzles, coloring and different toys. It was very evident that toddlers have an enormous amount of energy!