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
Latin American Local Faith Community Responses to Venezuelan Migration
As of June 2020, Venezuela ranks as the second-largest displacement crisis in the world, with an estimated 5.1 million Venezuelan refugees and migrants worldwide. The scale of displacement has been “unprecedented […] in magnitude and speed” in Latin America, and will only be further complicated by the global pandemic. While much attention has been paid to UN and international NGO …
CWS Applauds Reported Increase to This Year’s Refugee Resettlement Goal
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: February 5, 2021 CONTACT: media@cwsglobal.org CWS Applauds Reported Increase to This Year’s Refugee Resettlement Goal Washington, D.C.-In response to reports that President Biden intends to increase the Fiscal Year 2021 Refugee Admissions Ceiling, or presidential determination, from the historic low of 15,000 to a robust 62,500 refugees CWS director of policy and advocacy Meredith Owen issued the …
CWS Celebrates Executive Action to Restore Life-Saving Refugee Resettlement Program
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: February 5, 2021 CONTACT: media@cwsglobal.org Washington, D.C.—Church World Service today applauded efforts by the Biden administration to begin restoring the United States’ refugee resettlement program. In an important first step, last night’s executive order begins rebuilding this vital pathway for refugees and will lead to a more just, more compassionate, and more humane United States. Today’s …