Did you know that the wait time for a green card allowing legal entry into the US was nearly twice as long in 2018 than in 1991 ( when quotas were first implemented)? According to data from the Cato Institute, a libertarian think tank, the share of those waiting more than a decade increased nearly tenfold, and many immigrants already wait more than 20 years because of the quota system. The US ranks in the bottom third of wealthy countries in terms of net new immigration as a share of total population from 2015 to 2017. The 50 most prosperous countries have double both the average foreign-born share and average immigration rate of the US.
Is our lack of access to legal avenues of immigration consistent with Catholic values? Does it limit diversity of cultural and economic traits that might benefit our communities?
Interested in joining MMOC’s Peace and Justice Ministry? Call Sharon Barron 314-892-2331.