President Trump announced in his Inauguration Address that he is poised to sign multiple executive orders that punish immigrants all while wasting government resources. This includes:  

1. Declaring “illegal” immigration a national emergency, which would allow the administration to unlock military funds for border wall construction and the mass deportations of undocumented immigrants, as well as directing law enforcement to being the mass deportation of millions of undocumented immigrants across the country.  
    
2. Reinstating the “Remain in Mexico” policy, which forces asylum seekers, people fleeing persecution in their home countries, to wait in dangerous cities in Mexico while their cases are processed, which could take months or even years. The last time President Trump instituted this policy, people who were sent to Mexico were subjected to horrific crimes and exploitation, including kidnappings, rape, and other violent attacks. Human Rights First documented over 1,500 publicly reported cases of “murder, rape, torture, kidnapping, and other violent assaults against asylum seekers and migrants forced to return to Mexico by the Trump Administration".
    
3. Ending the so-called policy of “catch and release” which could prevent asylum seekers from living in community rather than in custody while they await a hearing on their case. This will lead to the prolonged and unnecessary detention of millions of families fleeing persecution. 
    

We believe that all people, including immigrants, are made in the image of God. Yet the punishment of asylum seekers fleeing persecution, the building of border walls, and the mass deportation of undocumented immigrants fails to respect the God-given dignity of every person and our call to welcome the stranger. Regardless of what policy the Trump administration rescinds or puts forth, faith communities will continue to look to our sacred texts and centuries of tradition to live out our faith by welcoming immigrants and protecting the most vulnerable among us. 

Tell President Trump that people of faith oppose these proposed policies today!