Last week, MCC Washington and 43 other organizations sent a letter to President Obama, drawing attention to the ongoing humanitarian needs in Iraq.
The letter calls on the U.S. government to “strongly engage Iraqis in the recovery, rebuilding and renewal of their country.”
Read the full letter. For more on MCC’s programs in Iraq, visit mcc.org/iraq. Above, a Kurdish familiy in northern Iraq prepares to receive MCC blankets and a relief kit.
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Middle East, Sign-on Letters | 
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Posted by Rachelle Lyndaker Schlabach
Last year, four hurricanes and tropical storms – Fay Gustav, Hanna and Ike – struck Haiti, resulting in 800 deaths, the destruction of 600,000 homes and a 15% contraction of the Haitian economy. (To get a sense of the devastation this caused, consider this: it would take 8-10 Hurricane Katrinas to cause the U.S. economy to contract by 15%.)
The Department of Homeland Security, Immigration and Customs Enforcement is planning to deport tens of thousands of Haitians currently residing in the United States. Haiti’s president, Rene Preval, has said that, because of the economic damage caused by the storms, “Haiti will no longer be able to receive the deported individuals that the United States sends us on a regular basis.” Haiti has stopped issuing travel documents to the Haitian detainees the United States wants to deport.
The United States should provide Temporary Protected Status (TPS) to the Haitians slated for deportation, which would provide them with a temporary work permit in the United States until the crisis in Haiti passes.
To learn more about the Haiti TPS situation, please read this fact sheet, created by an MCC partner in Miami, the Florida Immigrant Advocacy Center.
If you would like to send a letter to your representative, urging him or her to support TPS for Haitian immigrants, you can do so by following this link (letter sponsored by the Jesuit Refugee Service).
Leave a Comment » | Action Alerts, Immigration, Latin America/Caribbean | Permalink
Posted by Rachelle Lyndaker Schlabach
On February 26, 2009 a bipartisan group of 72 Members of Congress called on World Bank President Robert Zoellick to immediately suspend all scheduled debt repayments from Haiti and grant complete debt cancellation to the impoverished nation. Haiti currently sends $1.6 million to the World Bank every month while thousands of Haitians starve and the nation struggles to fill a severe budget gap that threatens the struggling democracy’s stability.
The letter was circulated by Rep. Maxine Waters (D-CA) as well as Reps. Barney Frank (D-MA) and Spencer Bachus (R-AL), Chairman and Ranking Member of the House Financial Services Committee. The Representatives express deep concern about “the urgent humanitarian needs of the people of Haiti and the difficulties Haiti has faced in qualifying for the cancellation of its debts.…We understand that Haiti is scheduled to send approximately $20 million to the World Bank in 2009,” the letter reads, “Clearly, this money would be better spent on basic infrastructure and poverty reduction for the Haitian people.”
Leave a Comment » | Action Alerts, Global Economic Justice, Latin America/Caribbean | Tagged: debt relief, haiti, jubilee, poverty | Permalink
Posted by Theo Sitther
The Washington Office is pleased cosponsor an Interfaith Domestic Violence Coalition Advocacy Day on April 29 in Washington, D.C.! More information, including registration instructions, can be found by clicking the link below. If you will be in the Capital area in late April, we’d love to see you there!
Leave a Comment » | Crime and Justice, Events | Permalink
Posted by Rachelle Lyndaker Schlabach
Theo Sitther writes in PeaceSigns about developments in the United States’ policy toward Afghanistan:
The words of Secretary of State Hillary Clinton are promising. On her first day in office, she addressed State Department employees by saying, “There are three legs to the stool of American foreign policy: defense, diplomacy, and development… And we will make clear, as we go forward, that diplomacy and development are essential tools in achieving the long-term objectives of the United States. And I will do all that I can, working with you, to make it abundantly clear that robust diplomacy and effective development are the best long-term tools for securing America’s future.”
Of the many challenges facing the Obama administration, the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan will likely remain the biggest foreign policy challenge. During the election campaign Mr. Obama promised changes in the way that the United States conducts foreign policy. One major change that he has proposed is ending the war in Iraq and focusing efforts on Afghanistan. His pledge during the campaign was to get “off the wrong battlefield in Iraq, and [take] the fight to the terrorists in Afghanistan and Pakistan.”
U.S. strategy in Afghanistan over the last seven years has primarily focused on military objectives, while the approach that’s necessary for a stable nation is one that supports the needs of ordinary Afghan citizens. Lisa Schirch, professor at Eastern Mennonite University and the director of the 3D Security Initiative, recently stated in an article that “expensive, short-term solutions, such as the proposed additional 20,000 troops, might help quell violence in the short term. But without more promising policy options–such as a diplomatic and development surge…a troop surge won’t build a foundation for Afghanistan’s future.”
The full article is available at PeaceSigns.
Leave a Comment » | Articles, Middle East, Militarism | Permalink
Posted by Rachelle Lyndaker Schlabach
Throughout the New Testament Jesus uses metaphors to describe the purpose of his life on earth. One of the most memorable metaphors can be found in John 6:35. “Jesus declared, ‘I am the bread of life. He who comes to me will never go hungry, and he who believes in me will never be thirsty.” Jesus uses bread and water in this metaphor because he acknowledges that food and water are the two most basic needs of humans. But Jesus takes it farther then this, throughout his life he shows his followers that they need to provide food and water for others. In the New Testament story of the feeding of the five thousand, a small boy shares a few pieces of fish and bread which miraculously become enough to feed the large crowd that is gathered to hear Jesus speak. “Jesus called his disciples to him and said, ‘I have compassion for these people; they have already been with me three days and have nothing to eat. I do not want to send them away hungry, or they may collapse on the way (Matthew 15:32).” The importance of the food that is distributed in this passage is often forgotten, because many Christians prefer to focus on the miraculous powers of Jesus. However, Christians need to take another look at this passage as food shortages and rampant food price increases occur throughout the world, giving the followers of Jesus around the world a new multitude to feed. Read the rest of this entry »
1 Comment | Global Economic Justice | Permalink
Posted by Rachelle Lyndaker Schlabach
Global Warming is the greatest natural, or perhaps unnatural, threat that faces mankind to date. The effects on the earth have already been monumental, and effects will only increase and quicken if not faced and dealt with. Almost every country, excluding the United States and Australia, has taken significant strides towards undoing and slowing the damage done to our atmosphere. The citizens of the United States need to stand up for their planet, cut down on what is damaging the environment, and save our planet. Some people claim that global warming does not exist, that the earth’s tremendous increase in temperature is part of a natural cycle that the earth goes through over many years. This opinion has been disappearing almost as rapidly as the ice caps of our earth. The question has shifted from if global warming exists; to how soon will its full effects be unleashed on our relatively small and unprotected planet. How do we combat this problem? There are many ways. However, most, if not all, require tremendous sacrifice on the part of, for the most part, the highest contributor to the problem, the United States. Read the rest of this entry »
3 Comments | Environment | Permalink
Posted by Rachelle Lyndaker Schlabach
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