Refugees and Immigrants
Every two seconds someone in the world is forced to leave their home and everything they know. With the threat of violence, persecution or disaster knocking on their door they make the only choice they can to find safety—they run.
In recent years fewer and fewer of the 70 million people who are forcibly displaced have access to the protection they need to rebuild their lives. Many nations that are hosting asylum seekers and refugees—including the United States at our southern border—deny them access to fundamental rights and critical services or have effectively closed their borders.
We believe every family has the right to live in safety and dignity. That is why we welcome refugees and asylum seekers with open hearts and helping hands. Faith leaders and refugee communities lift their voices to advocate for better policies, and by standing in solidarity, we are helping keep immigrant families together. Whether through the U.S. asylum system or refugee resettlement program here at home, or by aiding communities overseas, we help the vulnerable build lives free from fear.
Latest Updates
The Future of Refugee Resettlement & Complementary Pathways: Strengthening Sustainable and Strategic Solutions for Refugees
The global humanitarian and refugee protection system is facing significant challenges. Despite renewed international commitment to finding durable solutions for refugees, including resettlement and complementary pathways, most of the 1.4 million refugees in need of resettlement as a durable solution in 2020 are unlikely to be resettled. The reasons for this ‘resettlement gap’ are many; though the political challenges are …
Reflections from the U.S.-Mexico Border in this time of Pandemic
One day back in the fall, I was watching as a new group of asylum seekers arrived at the shelter after being released from ICE detention. They came off the ICE bus with their heads hanging low, their few meager belongings clutched in their hands, their children clinging to their legs. They took a seat in the pews and their …
CWS Joins #AllOfUS Campaign: Immigrants are Essential to Beating COVID-19
Washington, D.C. — Church World Service today joined with a broad coalition of faith, civil rights, business and immigration organizations in launching a six-figure nationwide campaign to make the case that all Americans, including immigrants, are essential to COVID-19 response and recovery efforts. The #AllOfUS campaign emphasizes that across countless sectors, immigrants—regardless of status—are working on the front lines fighting …