Information service of the Pontifical Mission Societies since 1927
Washington (Agenzia Fides) - The practice of detaining immigrant families fleeing violence in Central America will be a "stain" in the legacy of President Barack Obama and in the image of the country, said leaders religious who recently visited the detention center for families in Dilley, Texas (see Fides 28/03/2015) yesterday, April 9.
Kevin Appleby, Director of migration policies of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB), has warned that the practice of detention "has sufficient potential to deteriorate the legacy of the President on the issue of immigration. With one hand you give and the other you take away".
The note sent to Fides also highlights that, in the press conference held yesterday by the "Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service" (LIRS), which is part of the group that visited the center of Texas, the issue of assistance organizations to immigrants who are an expression of religious realities (6 out of 9 in total) was raised. They are accused of not providing complete health care, according to American law, which also provides abortion and the use of contraceptives to adolescents. Among immigrants there are in fact several young girls who got pregnant as a result of the violence suffered by the military or by criminals who took advantage of their condition.
One of the groups that insists on this aspect is the American Union of Civil Liberty (ACLU), that initially worked with Caritas and other bodies of Christian confession in favor of migrants, and now accuses them of not giving medical assistance to the young immigrant pregnant girls. The USCCB reiterated that such an approach goes against their principles and the rights of these vulnerable people. (CE) (Agenzia Fides 10/04/2015)
