Stay strong. It will be a tough few years.
We reaffirm our commitment to support and promote the rights and dignity of people on the move, as well as migrants already seeking a new life in our country. We reaffirm the humanity and dignity of LGBTQ persons and offer our love. We stand behind Bishop Budde’s plea for compassion and mercy toward the most vulnerable.
People migrate because they can no longer create a life in their country of origin. Violence, poverty and food insecurity, fueled by extreme climate events, cause people to flee. Stricter enforcement measures and militarization of the border will not address these problems, and instead, will lead to more human suffering.
For a full analysis of the new executive orders relating to immigration, you can read this analysis from National Immigration Law Center. Although there will be court challenges to most of these actions, they will still sow fear and chaos among migrants, which we believe is the intent.
Together with our partners, Quixote Center will redouble our efforts to address these issues. While the new Administration threatens to strand migrants in Mexico, we are working with our partners to strengthen their humanitarian response to offer welcome, inclusion and protection. While the new Administration threatens to force people to return through dangerous routes, we are working with our partners in Panama and elsewhere to provide accompaniment and safety.
Quixote Center is expanding our economic development work in Haiti, and we will continue to organize for policies toward Haiti that:
- End the scourge of weapons trafficking to the cartels and gangs that are destroying their country;
- Promote climate-smart economic development that ends poverty and despair that lead to migration and criminal activity;
- Return Haiti to democracy and fair elections.
We are restarting our work in Nicaragua, with a focus on economic development with the most vulnerable, and we will also work to prevent US sanctions that make things worse for the people of Nicaragua.
Our work represents who we are and what we stand for. We believe it has never been more urgent.
More Violence Strikes Gros Morne
On Saturday, January 18, heavily armed gang members attacked the villages of Grepen and Campeche in the commune of Gros Morne, Haiti, and killed 11 people. They injured others, and burned and looted houses. Quixote Center sustains a long-term partnership in Gros Morne, and Grepen is the location of the JMV agricultural center that many of you contribute to. [Read More Here]. The attack did not impact the staff directly, but everyone in the community is affected. The JMV Center continues to operate, but they are unable to report to work or operate programs out of their main center in Grepen. They are working in satellite centers in smaller communities.
We light a candle for our colleagues in Haiti and reaffirm our commitment to end the traffic of weapons that fuels this conflict.
Add comment