March-April 2013 Mercy justice highlights published every other month
JUSTICE HIGHLIGHT Meeting Examines Signs of the Times, Sets Priorities Justice coordinators from throughout the Institute and their leadership liaisons discovered the power of organizing for social change as they learned new tools and processes that will help with more successfully addressing the Critical Concerns that impact the lives of people we love. This annual meeting of the Extended Justice Team, which was hosted by the Institute Justice Team, was steeped in and informed by the signs of the times around the world, within the United States and from the perspective of the growing influence of multi-national corporations. Sisters Eileen Campbell and Anne Curtis of the Institute Leadership Team first reviewed a Mercy leadership document that includes, among other goals and strategies, a framework for integrating personal and communal responses to the Critical Concerns into all aspects of Mercy life. Then followed presentations by Sister Aine O’Connor, Mercy International Association’s representative at the United Nations; Sister Ana Maria Siufi of Argentina, a justice coordinator for the Caribbean, Central America South America Community; Sister Simone Campbell of NETWORK: a Catholic Social Justice Lobby; West Midwest justice coordinator Sister Karen Donahue; and Susan Makos of Mercy Investment Services. In terms of context, among the many things that participants heard about were: the deteriorating living conditions of the world’s poorest of the poor corporate land-grabbing and mega-mines that are displacing people and devastating the environment the unlikelihood that the U.S. Congress will address climate change this session a movement toward shaping global sustainability goals that would recognize people’s right to their natural resources and to the basic necessities of food and water opportunities for building on the success of the Nuns on the Bus effort that called attention to U.S. budget policies that would harm persons who are poor and vulnerable openings for enacting immigration reform and gun violence prevention measures in the U.S. peaceful movements that are countering the prevailing arguments for economic growth with an understanding of planetary limits and the need to protect the environment and all peoples. The Extended Justice Team concluded that “our response matters,” and that the work of justice must be grounded in contemplation and approached in a much more multicultural way. The Extended Justice Team decided to invite all of the Mercy community to participate in a campaign around immigration reform advocacy over the next few months. The team also committed to organizing around the theme of sustainability as it relates to the Awakening the Dreamer goals of environmental sustainability, spiritual fulfillment and social justice. The work of the Mercy Taking Action design team was affirmed and processes being developed for that new initiative were identified as one set of resources that would help Mercy move toward its goals of becoming more environmentally sustainable as well as advocating for environmental sustainability and social justice in the world.
EARTH Mercy Taking Action Addresses “Cost of Convenience” The first resource developed for the new initiative Mercy Taking Action is nearing completion. Called the “Cost of Convenience,” it is a 15-minute video that invites groups to examine how our throw-away society is impacting Earth and people who are poor and vulnerable. It was designed for use by boards and staff of Mercy institutions and ministries, as a way to begin considering changes in behaviors, policies and guidelines that will result in greater environmental sustainability and social justice. For more information, contact Marianne Comfort of the Institute Justice Team at mcomfort@sistersofmercy.org
Mercy Participates in Forward on Climate Rally
A couple of dozen Mercy sisters, associates, students and co-workers joined tens of thousands of others at the Forward on Climate Rally in Washington, D.C. The rally was organized to urge President Obama to take action on climate change during his second term of office, and as a first step to reject the Keystone XL pipeline. Building the pipeline, which is proposed to carry high carbon-emitting tar sands oil from Alberta, Canada, to the Gulf of Mexico in Texas, is seen by prominent climate scientist James Hanson as a point of no return for climate change. You can urge the president to reject the pipeline here, through an email campaigned organized by the Sierra Club. Also, 129 Mercy advocates contacted President Obama and members of Congress in support of a national climate summit that would consider policies to reduce carbon emissions and ease the impact of climate change. You may send a similar message to the president here and to your U.S. representatives here.
LCWR Reflection Stresses Right to Water The Leadership Conference of Women Religious (LCWR) focused on the right to water in the most recent Resolutions to Action. Sister Kathleen Ries, CSA, president of the board of directors of UNANIMA International, the non-governmental organization at the United Nations that represents 17 congregations of women religious, writes about her experiences of water and offers a social analysis, reflection and suggestions for action. You may read “The Right to Water” here.
Carlow University Hosts Climate Change Talk Carlow University celebrated Women's History Month with a presentation by Joylette Portloch, who spoke on proving global climate change exists and giving simple solutions on how we can help slow down climate change. Portloch is the star of "Don't Just Sit there Do something," a series of online videos that discuss climate change in simple terms.
IMMIGRATION Ministry Celebrates 25th Anniversary with Vigil
ARISE, which was founded by the Sisters of Mercy from the St. Louis area, celebrated its 25th anniversary recently with a vigil for immigration reform outside a community center in Alamo, Texas. The organization focuses on empowering community members, especially women and immigrants. Sister Denise Sausville explained that the vigil framed immigration issues within a biblical context to highlight the importance of human dignity and the call to respect strangers and provide hospitality.
Support for Immigration Reform at Critical Stage Immigration has become a hot topic ever since the presidential election, and more than 1,000 faith leaders from diverse traditions contacted their senators during a national call-in day Jan. 22 in support of immigration reform that prioritizes family unity and provides a pathway to full citizenship for the approximately 11 million undocumented people living in the United States. But now senators are getting flooded with thousands of faxes and phone calls opposing immigration reform that includes a pathway to citizenship, and we need to raise our voices even louder. The Institute Justice Team will be sending out a weekly email to advocates for immigration reform, with an easy-to-submit message to members of Congress. You may send the most recent message to your senators here. Please consider signing up for our emails, which will also include information on meetings in your area with legislators’ staff during Congress’ spring break, March 25-April 5, and ways you can get involved with advocacy on April 10, the date of a massive immigration rally in Washington, D.C. You may sign up for these emails by filling out this form.
Mercy Greets Immigrant Bus in New Hampshire Sisters of Mercy were among the group in Nashua, NH, that greeted a bus carrying 10 immigrant families touring several states to tell their stories of hiding in the shadows, living under the cloud of deportation, and the possibility that their families could be separated. The Massachusetts Immigrant and Refugee Advocacy Coalition sponsored The New England Keeping Families Together Bus Tour that traveled to a number of communities in New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Rhode Island and Connecticut. The sisters are working with immigrant families both in Nashua and Manchester, New Hampshire.
NON-VIOLENCE Mercy Speaks Out for Gun Violence Prevention Educators at 17 colleges, 32 secondary schools and nine elementary schools sponsored by the Sisters of Mercy nationwide have signed on to a Sisters of Mercy leadership team statement that emphasizes their commitment to building a culture of nonviolence. This unified statement initiated by the Institute Leadership Team is a direct response to the tragic school shooting in Newtown, Conn., and the ongoing debate around the need to reduce gun violence in the United States. In addition, more than 600 Mercy advocates emailed their legislators to call for legislation to prevent gun violence. You may still participate in this advocacy by taking action on the interfaith Gun Prevention Sabbath March 16-17. You may send an email message to your legislators, or if you’d like to organize a letter-writing campaign at your residence or place of worship this weekend, please contact Marianne Comfort of the Institute Justice Team at mcomfort@sistersofmercy.org for letters that you can print out. For a helpful reflection on this issue, Education for Justice, a project of the Center of Concern, has produced a process for exploration and action on gun violence prevention.
Workshop Addresses Violence in Guatemalan Village Fifteen residents of Chanmagua, Guatemala, participated in a three-day, Mercy-led workshop that explored alternatives to violence in their community. Some participants have had relatives killed and they say that they do not denounce the culprits out of fear that they also will be killed. Seven people were killed in just one month last summer, and two more were killed in one week in October. Members of the church are considering forming a commission to address the violence, and sisters are supporting that idea and praying for the people.
Delegation to Honduras Issues Report on Human Rights Abuses
The Institute Justice Team and the Friendship Office of the Americas organized a religious delegation to Honduras December 6-12, 2012, to examine firsthand the current situation in Honduras, and to extend a gesture of solidarity to those, including the Mercy community in Honduras, who are working with impoverished and marginalized persons in this Central American country. The findings of this delegation’s visit with human rights defenders, labor unions, journalists, indigenous and campesino/farm organizations, grassroots faith communities, United States Embassy personnel, and other key contacts in Honduras are documented in a 12page report issued by the Sisters of Mercy. You may read the summary report here.
Time to Call for Cuts to Military Spending The Sisters of Mercy have joined with other faith groups, peace advocates and human service organizations in calling for cuts to military spending in deficit-reduction agreements instead of yet more damaging cuts to critical services for persons who are poor and vulnerable. Both spending on the military and domestic programs were reduced March 1 when automatic budget cuts, called the sequester, were allowed to go into effect by Congress. While faith groups support the level of military cuts in this deal, we would prefer that they be more targeted to areas of waste and less necessary funding than in the current across-the-board fashion. You may view here a presentation on understanding the Pentagon budget. The New Priorities Network, in which the Sisters of Mercy participates, has developed a toolkit for advocacy on Pentagon spending. The National Priorities Project and Peace Action (PA) have developed an educational curriculum on "moving the money" from Pentagon spending to community needs.
Pray for Those Executed and Their Victims There were three state-sponsored executions in January and February 2013. We invite you to pray for those executed, their victims and all of their family members. You will find here a list of those executed and their victims, and the state in which they were executed.
POVERTY Automatic Federal Budget Cuts Threaten Programs Across-the-board federal budget cuts that went into effect March 1, in a process called sequestration, threaten many programs and services for persons who are poor and vulnerable. The $85 billion in cuts are divided between defense spending and “non-defense discretionary spending,” which includes medical research, education, help for low-income families, food and water safety and law enforcement. This comes on top of the large cuts in discretionary funding that are already in place under the 2011 Budget Control Act (BCA). Taken together, the BCA cuts and sequestration cut discretionary spending 14 percent below the 2010 level in inflation-adjusted terms. SNAP (formerly known as food stamps) and Medicaid, which are both categorized as “mandatory spending,” were not impacted by these most recent cuts. Analysts have estimated that the cuts will result in, among other things: a nearly 11-percent cut in weekly benefits for long-term unemployed workers receiving federally funded unemployment benefits; an estimated 600,000 to 775,000 women and children turned away from the WIC supplemental nutrition assistance program; more than 100,000 low-income families losing housing vouchers. If sequestration continues beyond 2013 as scheduled, by 2021 overall discretionary funding will be nearly 19 percent below the 2010 funding level, adjusted for inflation. Advocates are calling for cancelling sequestration and replacing it with a balanced package of tax and spending measures that do not increase poverty or inequality or exert such a sharp, immediate drag on the recovery. You may read more about sequestration and its impact in a policy paper prepared by the Center for Budget and Policy Priorities.
Interfaith Letter Supports Minimum Wage Bill The Sisters of Mercy Institute Justice Team signed onto an interfaith letter to members of Congress urging support for the Fair Minimum Wage Act of 2013 recently introduced by Senator Tom Harkin and Representative George Miller. The legislation would raise the federal minimum wage from $7.25 to $10.10 in three increments of 95 cents. The bill would also provide for annual increases indexed to inflation to keep pace with the rising cost of living. Lastly, for the first time in 22 years, the Fair Minimum Wage Act of 2013 would raise the minimum wage for tipped workers from its current low rate of $2.13 by 95 cents per year until it is 70% of the regular minimum wage.
Mercy Calls on Governors to Support Medicaid Expansion Sisters have joined NETWORK: a Catholic Social Justice Lobby in pressuring states to expand Medicaid, the government health program for persons who are poor. The Affordable Care Act expanded Medicaid to individuals and families earning up to 133% of the poverty line, but the Supreme Court ruled that states can opt out of that expansion plan. In Pennsylvania, the Sisters of Mercy were among 20 congregations of women and men religious who together collected more than 500 signatures on a letter to Governor Tom Corbett in favor of Medicaid expansion. In Ohio, Mercy joined a wide coalition of supporters of Medicaid expansion in contacting
Gov. Kasich and legislators to inform them of the benefits of expanding Medicaid to the economy and to hospitals and clinics. In Michigan, Sister Mary Ellen Howard, executive director of a free medical clinic in Detroit, wrote a column explaining why the governor should approve Medicaid expansion in that state. Pennsylvania is one of 14 states that have opted out of Medicaid expansion; the governors of Ohio and Michigan are among 24 that have recommended expanding the program, although legislatures have yet to affirm that decision in some of those states.
Mining Concerns Addressed in Paper Submitted to U.N. Mercy Global Action submitted a paper on mining abuses to the United Nations’ Commission for Social Development meetings held Feb. 6-15. The theme of this year’s commission was “Promoting empowerment of people in achieving poverty eradication, social integration and full employment and decent work for all.” Mercy’s paper lamented that “current extractive industry models of development often disempower people, perpetuating joblessness, poverty, discord and violence.” Specific concerns, based on the experience of sisters and the communities in which they serve, include the criminalization of persons protesting against mining injustices and the lack of information on the amount of money that is leaving countries where the mines are located instead of benefitting the local people.
D.C.-based Groups Prepare Justice-Focused Way of the Cross In a Washington, D.C., tradition, Christians will gather on March 29 for a Good Friday procession that stops for prayer and readings at many institutions that have great impact on people who are poor and vulnerable around the world. The stations, which include Congress and the White House, focus on different economic and ecological challenges or signs of hope for our times. The Economic and Ecological Way of the Cross was prepared this year by the Maryknoll Office for Global Concerns with support from other participants of the Faith, Economy, Ecology, Transformation coalition, of which the Sisters of Mercy are a member. You may download the script here for adaptation in your own communities.
ANTI-RACISM Video Documents Mercy Experiences with Segregation A video produced by the Mercy associates of the South Central Community features interviews with African American associates who have experienced segregation as well as stories of Mercy sisters’ educational ministry in the late 19th century to the children of newly freed slaves.
Mid-Atlantic Convent Commemorates MLK Day
Sisters and staff at McAuley Convent in Merion, Pennsylvania, received a dove of peace to pray with after a service held in honor of the Martin Luther King, Jr. holiday. The service focused on the famed civil rights leader’s dream of “the beloved community” and included the theme of solidarity –a deep and compassionate identification with all people, especially those who suffer from violence, war, human trafficking, or loss of a loved one to violence. All those gathered were recognized for how they share their gifts: as compassionate caregivers, therapists, recreational directors, administrators, maintenance workers, food service employees, and so many other signs of loving service. Sisters, for their part, exhibit their fourth vow of service through prayer for Mercy ministries and the making of blankets for the children of Mercy Neighborhood Ministries. Some of the blankets were displayed as part of the prayer space.
WOMEN Associate Speaks at U.N. Commission on Women
Mercy Associate Nelly del Cid (far right on the panel) was a key speaker during a ‘Violence, Economics and War’ forum at the United Nations 57th Commission on the Status of Women (CSW-57) March 5. “Elimination of violence against women could be a reality if women's human rights would be prioritized along with and as much as political, economic and military realities," Nelly said to a room full of women who had travelled to New York from across the globe. This was the latest of Nelly’s visits to the United States to report on human rights abuses in her native Honduras. Her commitment to human rights of women stems from the Critical Concerns and, more personally, from the fact that being a woman compromises her safety at home. According to the Violence Observatory of the Autonomous University of Honduras, a woman or girl is killed every 15 hours in Honduras. Nelly is also director of Mercy Dreamweavers, a Mercy ministry that is committed to defending women’s’ rights, and an active member of the Women in Resistance, a branch of the Honduran Resistance Movement. For the same conference, Mercy Global Action at the United Nations submitted a paper on human trafficking that notes the root causes of human trafficking and identifies areas critical for preventing the trafficking of women and girls: increased development aid that empowers women economically, politically and socially; and increased education for girls. The paper also recommends increased training to identify and support trafficked women and girls.
Pittsburgh Hosts Women-Centered Stations of the Cross For Women’s History Month, the Sisters of Mercy in Pittsburgh co-sponsored with Call to Action the stations of the Cross "Women at the Foot of the Cross." Women-centered biblical parables and present-day women‘s
issues were the basis for reflection on the traditional 14 stations.
Issue of Stop Human Trafficking newsletter available The February issue of Stop Trafficking, a ministry that the Sisters of Mercy supports, includes reports on the near-slavery conditions of some migrant and domestic workers in the United States. The e-newsletter also documents how workers sometimes end up on U.S. military bases on false pretenses and are “paid less than 25% of the promised wages in untenable working conditions.”
Victory: Domestic Violence, Human Trafficking Laws Passed Both the Senate and House of Representatives passed legislation that will re-authorize the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) and the Trafficking Victims Protection Act (TVPA). The Sisters of Mercy advocated for reauthorization of both pieces of legislation in the last Congress. VAWA was first passed in 1994 and has been strengthened in subsequent reauthorizations with the input of law enforcement and service providers. The reauthorization legislation expands protections explicitly to Native Americans, undocumented immigrants and lesbians. The TVPA, first passed into law in 2000, seeks to combat human trafficking through prosecution of perpetrators, protection of victims, and prevention. Sister Janice Ryan of Vermont worked with Senator Patrick Leahy’s staff to get up-to-the-moment news on the most recent legislation and how Mercy could best approach advocacy.
“Billion Rising” Calls Attention to Violence Against Women
Students at Mercy High School San Francisco participated in the Billion Rising dance, a global effort on Valentine’s Day to call attention to violence against women. A student writes about her growing awareness of the issue here.
OTHER CRITICAL CONCERNS ENGAGEMENT Awakening the Dreamer Continues as New Initiative Begins
Sisters Canice Johnson (pictured above) and Marian Schultz led about two dozen sisters, associates and students from Mercy High School in Farmington Hills, Michigan, in an Awakening the Dreamer workshop. Resources are being designed to explore further the symposium’s themes of environmental sustainability, spiritual fulfillment and social justice, in a new initiative called Mercy Taking Action. Thousands of people have experienced Awakening the Dreamer through the Sisters of Mercy, and promotion of the workshop continues.
SAVE THE DATES Bring Your Voice to Ecumenical Days’ Focus on Food Justice Ecumenical Advocacy Days, of which the Sisters of Mercy are a sponsor, will present “At God’s Table: Food Justice for a Healthy World,” a weekend of learning and inspiration April 5-8, 2013 in the Washington, D.C., area. Keynote speakers include the national policy director for Interfaith Worker Justice, a supporter of the land rights movement in Brazil, and activists from El Salvador, Guatemala and Ghana. Dozens of workshops will explore the theme of food justice through the perspectives of U.S. policy, global economic justice, the environment, peace and global security and the realities of Africa, Asia, Latin America and the Middle East. You can learn more here.
Rally to Support Fair, Humane Immigration Reform Mercy will be participating in a rally in Washington, D.C. on April 10 that calls for immigration reform that reunites families and includes a pathway for citizenship family. For more information, contact Ryan Murphy of the Institute Justice Team at rmurphy@sistersofmercy.org
SUGGESTED RESOURCES Documentary Portrays Human Trafficking as “Modern Slavery” The cruel and dehumanizing practices of global human trafficking in a dozen countries, including the United States, are depicted in the documentary Not My Life. Portraits of people rescuing victims and trying to prevent this international crime offer glimpses of hope.
Bill Moyers Speaks Out Against Armed Drones Journalist Bill Moyers laments the armed drones used in the “war on terrorism” that have killed non-combatant women, children and men and likely increased anger against the U.S. and boosted support for terrorist groups.
Film Exposes U.S. Policy’s Role in Mass Migration
The film Harvest of Empire exposes how U.S. foreign policy at least in part caused mass migration from Puerto Rico, the Dominican Republic, Cuba, Mexico, El Salvador, Guatemala and Nicaragua. In some cases, immigrants were welcomed and even recruited to come to the U.S. as labor in boom times and then expelled when they were no longer needed. But in most cases, U.S. support for oppressive regimes created the atmosphere of violence and chaos from which many felt they had to flee for the safety of themselves and their families.
Updated Mercy Advocacy Information Available You can find the most up-to-date advocacy campaigns and links to current issues Mercy is addressing here.
Please Tell Us How You are Addressing the Critical Concerns We welcome all news items and photos for the every-other-month Justice Highlights. Please send them to mcomfort@sistersofmercy.org.