Conversation Café – Immigration as a Moral Issue
Migration of people—driven by economic, social, political and environmental factors—is taking place around the world. Millions are currently in transit, in refugee camps, in detention centers, or living and working in places without full legal status and without access to social services or protection of civil rights. Delegates at the 2010 General Assembly in Minneapolis, MN selected “Immigration” to be the 2010—2014 Congregational Study/Action Issue (CSAI) of the Unitarian Universalist Association of Congregations (UUA). Join ALUUC members and friends to discuss this issue as part of a six week curriculum, intended to give a broad overview to this complex issue.
We will meet on Monday evenings – June 6, 13, 20 and July 11, 18, and 25 from 6:00-7:30 pm in the Darwin Room.
June 6 – Understanding the Causes of Migration
June 13 – History of Immigration in the U.S.
June 20 – Economics of (Im)migration
July 11 – Security, Enforcement, and Human Rights
July 18 – Who Benefits from a Broken System?
July 25 – Seeking Solutions
For more information, http://www.uua.org/socialjustice/issuesprocess/currentissues/immigration/index.shtml
Understanding the Causes of Migration
June 6, 2011
This session will introduce participants to each other and get a sense of what they bring with them to the discussion and what they hope to gain; engage participants with the personal reasons for why people immigrate; and to begin to think about how our national policy should treat different kinds of immigrants.
- Definition of Terms – Handout 1.1
- Three Stories – Handout 1.2
- The Legalities of Legal Immigration – Handout 1.3
- What Part of Legal Immigration Don’t You Understand – Handout1.4
- What Part of Illegal Don’t You Understand – Handout 1.5
History of (Im)migration in the U.S.
June 13, 2011
This session will encourage participants to see the immigration issue from perspectives other than from the legacy of colonialism and to think about what it means to be considered “American.”
- A Native American Perspective on Immigration – Handout 2.1
- Story from the Tohono O’odham Nation – Handout 2.2
- A Very Brief Primer on U.S.- Mexican History – Handout 2.3
- Historical Anti-Immigration Quotes That Sound…Familiar – Handout 2.4
- White by Law – Handout 2.5
Economics of (Im)migration
June 20, 2011
To “experience” the standard of living disparities between the U.S. and Mexico (and by extension, other parts of the world) and to see the working conditions under which migrant workers toil.
- Shop Til You Drop on a Mexican Wage – Handout 3.1
- NAFTA and Immigration – Handout 3.2
- effect on Worker Conditions – Handout 3.3
- Farmworkers – Handout 3.4
- Immigration Myths and Facts – Handout 3.5
Security, Enforcement, and Human Rights
July 11
This session will provide a glimpse of the enormity of the human suffering caused by the U.S.’ enforcement-only immigration policy and will consider how human rights are protected (or not.)
- Militarization of the Border-Handout 4.1
- What Happens When a Town Implodes – Handout 4.2
- Housing Immigration Detainees in a Prison – Handout 4.3
- Hazing Arizona – Handout 4.4
- Mahmod’s Story – A Family Torn Apart – Handout4.5
Who Benefits from a Broken System?
July 18
This session will tie together what has been learned from the previous weeks and will reframe the debate from one of citizenship to one of globalization and corporate power.
- Don’t Be Fooled Immigration in NOT the Real Problem – Handout 5.1
- Does Globalization Help the Poor – Handout 5.2
- Migrants Pawns in Mexico-U.S. Game – Handout 5.3
- This Alien Life Privatized Prisons for Immigrants – Handout 5.4
- Prison Economics Help Driv Arizona Immigration Law – Handout 5.5
Seeking Solutions
July 25
This session will help us visualize what a just immigration policy would look like from a Unitarian Universalist (UU) perspective. We will also plan our next steps of participation in the social witness process.
