Women, men religious advocating for immigration reform

For more than 15 years, women and men religious in the Archdiocese of Chicago have been coming together to advocate for immigration reform as well as educate Catholics and offer public witness about the need for such reform.

Sisters and Brothers of Immigrants, which was formed in 2007 and obtained non-profit status in 2014, has held true to that mission, even as its members have aged and worked to adapt to a changing immigration landscape.

“The mission really remains the same, calling for comprehensive and compassionate immigration reform and calling for legislation that protects migrants,” said Viatorian Brother Michael Gosch.

The organization has served as a node in the web of efforts led by various people, religious communities and non-profit organizations, leaders said.

“The image that comes to my mind is a switchboard,” said Sinsinawa Dominican Sister Bernardine Karge. “We’re a source of inspiration and connection.”

A weekly email keeps members updated on issues that need their advocacy, said Holy Spirit Missionary Sister Rose Therese Nolta. That update is sent not only to SBI members but to anyone who asked for it.

“The situation changes week by week or moment by moment,” Sister Rose Therese said. “It gives the situation prayer context, and then gives actions that would be possibilities this week.”

Members also have worked with various congregations on projects that minister directly to migrants in need, including the Viatorian House of Hospitality and the Bethany House of Hospitality, for young men and women asylum seekers who would otherwise be in detention; and the Sanctuary Working Group, which helps migrants find housing in the Chicago area.

“We’ve provided resources, and volunteers,” Brother Michael said.

That became even more important as busloads of migrants were sent to the Chicago area starting in 2022 with no notice or preparation.

In August 2024, Sister Bernardine wrote, “With the new arrivals in the Chicagoland area these past two years, the networks with whom we are connected have been invaluable in terms of coordinating resources, finding housing, and taking people to court. ‘Welcome the stranger’ is the Gospel mandate we take seriously. In a spirit of gratitude, we want to generously share the resources we have.”

A monthly public witness of standing with signs at the corner of Belmont and Milwaukee avenues, next to a gas station parking lot that functioned as a day labor market, ended with the COVID-19 shutdown in March 2020, Brother Michael said.

However, one witness was held in 2021 to call attention to a measure that used the COVID-19 pandemic as a tool to restrict asylum seekers.

“It’s just to keep the issue in the forefront of voters minds and show immigrants in a positive light,” Brother Michael said.

The group also participates each December in the posada organized by the Archdiocese of Chicago’s immigration ministry, in which pilgrims pray at downtown sites including the Immigration and Customs Enforcement office building, the federal Metropolitan Detention Center, Federal Plaza and DePaul University in a reenactment of Mary and Joseph’s search for shelter.

Brother Michael praised the efforts of Catholic Charities and many parishes in the Archdiocese of Chicago to welcome and support migrants and immigrants, work that has been supported by members of Sisters and Brothers of Immigrants. But, he said, there is still work to be done on educating people on the plight of asylum seekers, who are allowed to enter the country under U.S. law.

“We never refer to it as a ‘migrant crisis,’” he said. “That subtly implies that it was the migrants who caused the crisis. Enshrined in federal law is the right for any person to come to our border and to request asylum. Then it’s up to immigration courts to adjudicate that claim.”

Some asylum seekers, who have broken no laws, can be held in detention for years waiting for their cases to be heard, he said.

Some are allowed to live in the community, or in alternative shelters such as Viator House and Bethany House. There, caseworkers help them with three-fold trauma: what they experienced in their home country that pushed them to flee; what they experienced on the journey to the United States, often including robbery and assault in addition to the hardship of making their way here, often across several countries on foot; and what they experienced when they arrived in this country “and had all their choices taken away from them,” Brother Michael said.

The Sisters and Brothers of Immigrants will continue their work, they said, because it is what they are called to do by the Gospel, and they will continue to work to involve more parishioners.

“We Catholics, we’re service-orientated but we’re not very good at advocacy,” Sister Rose Therese said. “It’s time now for Catholics to use their voices, to be heard about this. It’s important to know about it and work for it right now. … We need encouragement and education on how to advocate.”