Busy Person’s Retreat Day One: Monday, February 6

Vincent de Paul studies book

Today’s opening reflection to this year’s Busy Person’s Retreat invites us to consider “How can I stay spiritually healthy so I can discern what is essential in life?”

A rite of passage in making a good retreat must surely begin with slowing down and becoming aware of the present moment.

With this in mind, as you start the retreat this morning, I invite you to take a few slow deep breaths, inhaling through your nose and exhaling through your mouth. As you do, seek to let go of any stressors that may be making a claim on your heart and mind right now. Try to let any anxieties go, and become aware of the present moment. Rest in the certainty that the present moment is enough.

I now invite you to carve out the next few minutes to rest in this space. Be still and know …

Let us begin.

Each one of us has a unique identity and place in the world. Indeed, it is humbling to think that no one who has ever existed on this planet is quite like us, and there will never be another person like us again!

My personal faith tradition is Catholic. My formation in this tradition has very much shaped the way in which I see the world. It is from this perspective that I write. I believe that God speaks to each of us in the depth of our hearts, through community and in the everyday, ordinary events of our lives.

Many years ago, I was introduced to the writings of Frederick Buechner, an American writer and theologian, who so eloquently echoed this cornerstone of my belief.

If God speaks anywhere, it is into our personal lives that he speaks. Someone we love dies, say. Some unforeseen act of kindness or cruelty touches the heart or makes the blood run cold. We fail a friend, or a friend fails us, and we are appalled at the capacity we all of us have for estranging the very people in our lives we need the most. Or maybe nothing extraordinary happens at all— just one day following another, helter-skelter, in the manner of days. We sleep and dream. We wake. We work. We remember and forget. We have fun and are depressed. And into the thick of it, or out of the thick of it, at moments of even the most humdrum of our days, God speaks. But what do I mean by saying that God speaks? He speaks not just through the sounds we hear, of course, but through events in all their complexity and variety, through the harmonies and disharmonies and counterpoint of all that happens.[i]

If we are to understand how to take better take care of ourselves and remain spiritually healthy, we need to know how to discern well and how to align our values and behaviors with healthy choices that support us choosing life. This will surely involve learning how to listen and to trust the voice deep within, paying attention to the wisdom of the community that supports us, and observing the rhythm of our days.

At first, this may sound easy, but how do we discern well amid the cacophony of dissonant and competing clatter that regulates our waking hours? Maybe some Vincentian wisdom can guide us along our discernment path.

Vincent de Paul’s process of discernment had three parts: an openness to God’s will, an evaluation of reasons for or against an action, and a consultation with wise persons.[ii]

For Vincent and Louise, it was in the concrete and sometimes messy circumstances of their lives that they so deeply experienced the presence of God. They found God very much alive in the midst of their relationships, especially with those who existed on the margins of seventeenth-century French society. The essence of their approach involved “living with a listening heart, paying daily attentiveness to God’s presence, and a daily discerning and decisioning.”[iii] Such a Vincentian approach has been described by scholar Vie Thorgren as “living with a discerning heart.”[iv] This discerning sensibility would also involve examining the pros and cons of a situation and deciding on a suitable response or outcome.

Yet, it is important to note that it was often only after events themselves had passed, in an intimate moment of prayer and contemplation, that their meaning became clear. Thus, for Vincent and Louise, carving out quiet, reflective moments was essential as it provided opportunities to interpret the events of their lives through the lens of their faith, and in dialogue with their lived experience.

The final integral part of Vincent and Louise’s discernment process involved seeking advice and sound counsel from others whose wisdom they respected. This stemmed from their deep belief and trust in the fact that God mediated God’s will through people.[v] Consequently, while receiving wise counsel, Vincent and Louise would seek to identify the word of God, which would then help guide and inform their decision-making and their quest for right and just action.

So, what might all of this mean for us today? A wise colleague in ministry once posited this question, “If you can’t say no to the people in your life, then what does your yes really mean?” This question has remained with me for many years.

And so, I will leave you with some questions of my own to ponder on this day of our opening retreat. What is the quality of the yeses in your life right now? Are you saying no when you need to? And how, with a listening heart, might you discern the difference?


Reflection by: Siobhan O’Donoghue, M. Div., Director of Faculty and Staff Eng

[i] Frederick Buechner, The Sacred Journey (San Francisco: Harper & Row, 1982), pp. 1-2.

[ii] As observed in the abstract to Hugh O’Donnell, C.M., “Vincentian Discernment,” Vincentian Heritage 15:1 (1994). Available at: http://via.library.depaul.edu/vhj/vol15/iss1/2.

[iii] O’Donnell, “Vincentian Discernment,” 15.

[iv] Ibid.

[v] Ibid., 8.

Lawful Assembly Podcast – Episode 33: New Year, Same Problems

Show Notes

This is an interview with Rev. Craig B. Mousin, an Adjunct Faculty member of DePaul University’s College of Law, Refugee and Forced Migration Studies Program, and the Grace School of Applied Diplomacy. The podcast critiques Department of Homeland Security Secretary Mayorkas’ recent NPR interview for what the interview omits in explaining 2023 asylum policies.

ACTION STEP

Imagine you are an asylum-seeker who has left your homeland.  Listen to the interview with Secretary Mayorkas and consider its impact as you.  Then write to the White House and Secretary Mayorkas and urge the Biden administration to follow the procedures and procedural protections of the Refugee Act of 1980: https://www.npr.org/people/4080709/steve-inskeep

RESOURCES

Dr. Shailja Sharma: “The Border ‘Crisis’ Is a Crisis We Can Solve,” January 9, 2023:  https://www.chicagotribune.com/opinion/commentary/ct-opinion-border-asylum-seekers-resources-title-42-20230109-g3aoghdnn5avxavszsfcln7viu-story.html

Paul Schmidt quotes several experts on the new policy and adds his critique: (January  6, 2023):   https://immigrationcourtside.com/2023/01/06/%f0%9f%a4%af%f0%9f%91%8e%f0%9f%8f%bc-experts-condemnation-of-bidens-latest-anti-asylum-border-gimmicks-swift-brutal-true/

Law professor Karen Musalo: “Enough with the Political Games.  Migrants Have a Right to Asylum,” January 6, 2023, https://www.latimes.com/opinion/story/2023-01-06/biden-border-immigration-asylum-title-42

The National Immigrant Justice Center’s FAQs on these policies:  https://immigrantjustice.org/staff/blog/recycling-trumps-asylum-bans-expanding-title-42-how-bidens-new-policies-threaten

For information on U.S. policies undermining democracy, see, Mousin, “You Were Told to Love the Immigrant,” https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=2784951, text between fns. 161-166.

For documentation on the violence caused by soldiers trained at the School of the Americas Watch, now WHINSEC:  www.soaw.org

The statistics on the violence at the border: US/Mexico: Expelling Venezuelans Threatens Rights, Lives Restore Access to Asylum at the Border, (October 21, 2022) as cited in https://lawprofessors.typepad.com/immigration/2022/10/human-rights-watch-usmexico-expelling-venezuelans-threatens-rights-lives-restore-access-to-asylum-at.html

We welcome your inquiries or suggestions for future podcasts.  If you would like to ask more questions about our podcasts or comment, email us at: mission.depaul@gmail.com

Lawful Assembly Podcast: Episode 32: “Fear Not”

Show Notes

This is an interview with Rev. Craig B. Mousin, an Adjunct Faculty member of DePaul University’s College of Law, Refugee and Forced Migration Studies Program, and the Grace School of Applied Diplomacy. The podcast explores how the claim for a fully secure border has stalled immigration reform for over three decades.  It calls for comprehensive immigration reform to address many of the issues the failed policies of detention and deportation have been unable to resolve.

ACTION STEP

The American Friends Service Committee (AFSC) is hosting a week of action highlighting the theme “migration Join AFSC, the Interfaith Immigration Coalition (IIC), and #WelcomeWithDignity  You can find suggestions for action at: bit.ly/AsylumDay22Toolkit  

RESOURCES

The Prophet Haggai’s words are at Haggai 2:5 and the angels’ proclamation at Luke 2:10 (KJV).

Governor Johnston’s 1776 “Address in Answer to the King’s Speech” was quoted in Jack P. Greene, The Constitutional Origins of the American Revolution, (Cambridge University Press, 2011), p. 166.

John Higham’s “American cosmopolitan faith” can be found at “Instead of a Sequel, or How I Lost My Subject,” Reviews in American History 28 (2000), 327, 329, cited by Jerry Kammer, “Historian John Higham’s Widening Views on Modern Efforts to Limit Immigration, It’s Not All About Nativism,” May 23, 2010, https://cis.org/Historian-John-Highanms-Widening-Views-Modern-Efforts-Limit-Immigration.   His comment on the disparities can be found at “Sequel,” p. 330.

The mileage of our borders is in, R. Jones, Nobody is Protected, How the Border Patrol Became the Most Dangerous Police Force in the United States, (Counterpoint, Berkeley, 2022), p. 45.

Information on the safety statistics:

We welcome your inquiries or suggestions for future podcasts.  If you would like to ask more questions about our podcasts or comment, email us at: mission.depaul@gmail.com

Lawful Assembly Episode 31: New Light to Pierce the Logjam


This is an interview with Rev. Craig B. Mousin, an Adjunct Faculty member of DePaul University’s College of Law, Refugee and Forced Migration Studies Program and the Grace School of Applied Diplomacy. The podcast explores a recent speech by Pope Francis involving responses to refugees, asylum seekers and vulnerable immigrants.  Pope Francis suggests that, through our common humanity, our collaborative efforts can build a safer world.

ACTION STEP

Read and respond to Pope Francis’ “Address of His Holiness Pope Francis to Participants in the Meeting on Refugees Promoted by the Pontifical Gregorian University,” September 29, 2022: https://www.vatican.va/content/francesco/en/speeches/2022/september/documents/20220929-incontro-rifugiati.html

RESOURCES

You can read more about Drew Edwards and his work with Pangea at:  https://www.pangeaeducation.org

He also wrote a report of his attendance at the meeting of educators in Rome:

https://www.pangeaeducation.org/news/pope-francis-a-champion-for-refugee-education

For information on the DePaul Migration Collaborative:  https://law.depaul.edu/academics/centers-institutes-initiatives/depaul-migration-collaborative/Pages/default.aspx

Other information on programs sponsored by DePaul’s Division of Ministry and Mission at:  https://offices.depaul.edu/mission-ministry/Pages/default.aspx 

MUSIC FOR THE JOURNEY

As we work together for our common global world, listen to Wiyaala sing Osibisa’s song, Woyaya (We Are Going) at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BwckMpR9V-Q

We welcome your inquiries or suggestions for future podcasts.  If you would like to ask more questions about our podcasts or comment, email us at: mission.depaul@gmail.com

Lawful Assembly Podcast – Episode 30: Who Is My Neighbor?

This is an interview with Rev. Craig B. Mousin, an Adjunct Faculty member of the DePaul University’s College of Law, Refugee and Forced Migrations Studies Program and the Grace School of Applied Diplomacy. The podcast examines the recent bussing of asylum applicants to northern cities.  Through exploration of the Good Samaritan Parable, the podcast invites listeners to ask the question how can we each be a neighbor to a vulnerable person.

ACTION STEP

1.      Read the Good Samaritan Parable, Luke 10:25-37, and engage in a conversation with someone regarding how it applies to the efforts to send asylum applicants away from the border.

2.      Encourage Congress to pass comprehensive immigration reform.

RESOURCES

Sara Baielles’ “A Safe Place to Land” with John Legend is at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ht2NCrlghS4

For an expanded discussion of Dr. André LaCocque’s interpretation of the Good Samaritan Parable, including citations to his works, see my article on “Constantine’s Legacy: Preserving Empire While Undermining International Law”. https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=3960335

at pp. 390-91.

Mayor Sean McDermott’s quote can be found in “Texas Gov. Abbott sends asylum seekers here to sow chaos, but Illinois is better than that,” (September 15, 2022) at: https://chicago.suntimes.com/2022/9/15/23355440/texas-gov-abbott-asylum-seekers-venezuela-immigrants-countryside-mayor-sean

Paul Wickham Schmidt, “Opportunity Knocks,” (September 16, 2022) at:

https://immigrationcourtside.com/2022/09/17/

You may find Alexandra Penfold and Suzanne Kaufman’s book, All Are Neighbors at: https://www.womenandchildrenfirst.com/book/9780593429983

The budget for the federal government support of refugee resettlement came from:  Todd Miller, “More Than a Wall: Corporate Profiteering and the Militarization of U.S. Borders,” Transnational Institute (TNI), September 16, 2019) at https://www.tni.org/files/publication-downloads/more_than_a_wall_-_executive_summary.pdf

Lawful Assembly Podcast Episode 29: Gratitude for those who labor and those who have labored.

This is an interview with Rev. Craig B. Mousin, an Adjunct Faculty member of the DePaul University’s College of Law, Refugee and Forced Migrations Studies Program and the Grace School of Applied Diplomacy. The podcast celebrates all those who worked to defeat the amendments that tried to codify Title 42 in August, 2022.  In addition, as we celebrate Labor Day 2022, we give thanks for all those immigrants who came to our nation, offered their skills and fostered families that have contributed to the common good.

ACTION STEPS

Thank your Senator(s) if they voted to defeat the anti-immigrant amendments to the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022.  If your Senator(s) voted for an amendment, redouble your efforts to urge them to convince them to end Title 42.

Urge Congress to pass the Afghan Adjustment Act.  Church World Service provides you with a link to send your email at:  https://cwsglobal.org/action-alerts/take-action-urge-congress-to-swiftly-pass-the-bipartisan-afghan-adjustment-act/

Faith leaders are invited to urge the Biden administration to increase the number of refugees to be resettled in the next fiscal year to 200,000.  Church World Service provides you with a link to send your email: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScphVDWU93gJA5Q6ZLYcYyCbDsFwPYKjCindlkhO2Bz-dgC9Q/viewform

All are urged to encourage Congress to increase refugee resettlement to 200,000.  https://cwsglobal.org/action-alerts/take-action-urge-congress-to-welcome-refugees-rebuild-the-u-s-resettlement-program/

To be most effective please respond prior to Tuesday, September 6.  Thank you.

RESOURCES

Information on the efforts to amend the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 came from Greg Chen’s “Senate Passage of Legislation Without Immigration.”  You can find additional information on the congressional action in his post:  https://thinkimmigration.org/blog/2022/08/08/why-were-celebrating-the-senates-passage-of-legislation-without-immigration/

Find John McCutcheon’s research about the deportees who died in 1948 and his version of Woody Guthrie’s song, “Deportees,” at:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DxsPL4uEo34 Visit his website at:  https://www.folkmusic.com

Find Emma’s Revolution song, “Bound for Freedom” at:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uo9PVE_RxMI  Visit their website at:  https://www.emmasrevolution.com

We welcome your inquiries or suggestions for future podcasts.  If you would like to ask more questions about our podcasts or comment, email us at: mission.depaul@gmail.com

 

Vincentian Heritage Week 2022!

Vincent was a trailblazer, a true change agent of his day. He was a man who saw hope and possibility despite the challenges of his time. He felt a keen dissatisfaction in the gap between the way the world should be and the way the world was. Throughout his 79 years, Vincent sought to close that divide, asking “what must be done” and acting on the answers he found. Four hundred years later, DePaul University continues to carry forward his legacy by educating the next generation of trailblazers. 

During Vincentian Heritage Week the Division of Mission and Ministry will host the key events below.

Sunday Night Mass & BBQ
Sunday, September 25, 6pm | St. Vincent de Paul Parish 

Join Catholic Campus Ministry and St. Vincent de Paul Parish for a (free) BBQ on the Parish Lawn (on Webster Ave.) to celebrate the Feast Day at 6pm after 5pm Mass. 

Whether you go to Mass weekly, occasionally, or have never been to a Catholic Mass, you are welcome here! Come celebrate! 

Feast Day Mass 
Tuesday, September 27, 12:00 pm  | Lincoln Park & Loop Campuses 

For those wishing to attend Mass celebrating St. Vincent de Paul’s Feast Day, Masses will be held in the Loop in the Miraculous Medal Chapel (Lewis Center – First Floor), and in Lincoln Park in the St. Louise de Marillac Chapel (Student Center – First Floor). 

Feast Day Lunch 
Tuesday, September 27, 12:45 pm | Lincoln Park & Loop Campuses 

Celebrate our namesake’s Feast Day with a celebratory lunch at 12:45 pm. Everyone is welcome! 

  • In the Loop, join us in the DePaul Club. RSVP here for the Loop lunch.  

  • For the lunch in Lincoln Park, no need to register, just come to Catholic Campus Ministry (Student Center – Suite 104). 

Loop Mini Vinny Fest 
Tuesday, September 27, 2:00-4:00pm | Loop DePaul Plaza 

Join the Office of Student Involvement and Mission and Ministry for our first ever Loop Mini Vinny Fest! Celebrate our namesake’s Feast Day and DePaul University’s 125th anniversary with fun, games, photos, caricatures and more! 

St. Vincent de Paul Heritage Week Luncheon
Wednesday, September 28 (12 – 1:30 pm) | Loop DePaul Center Concourse  

Join the DePaul community for a special luncheon featuring an engaging conversation with Sister Helen Prejean, ardent advocate for restorative justice and activist against the death penalty. Dr. Robert Manuel, DePaul University’s new President, will present Sr. Helen with the St. Vincent de Paul Award in recognition of her continued life’s work. The award is DePaul’s highest honor, with past winners including Dorothy Day, Monsignor John Egan, and Muhammad Yunus. 

The hybrid luncheon will be hosted on the Concourse Level of the DePaul Center, starting at noon. We hope you can join us! We will also be hosting the conversation via Zoom, for those who cannot join us in person. 

St. Vincent de Paul Prayer Breakfast
Friday, September 30 (9:00 – 10:30 am) | Student Center 120 A & B 

Come celebrate our shared Vincentian heritage with delicious food and great community at our annual St. Vincent de Paul Prayer Breakfast! This year, we will welcome new DePaul University President Dr. Robert L. Manuel, who will share his vision of the Vincentian spirit and its impact in these times of complexity and uncertainty.

It should be a great chance to meet the new President, and start DePaul’s 125th year in community, gathered together for the sake of a mission. All our welcome! 

Vinny Fest 
Friday, September 30 (2pm – 4pm) | Lincoln Park Quad & St. Vincent’s Circle 

Join us for Vinny Fest 2022, a DePaul tradition to honor and celebrate St. Vincent de Paul’s legacy with fun, games, photos with Vincent, free food, and more! Vinny Fest features student organizations, offices, and departments as they host engaging activities to celebrate our mission in action as a DePaul community. Follow @mmatmdepaul to stay up to date.  

Lawful Assembly Podcast – Episode 28: Do Not Let Summer Daze Convert Pretense Into Law: End Title 42

SHOW NOTES

This is an interview with Rev. Craig B. Mousin, an Adjunct Faculty member of the DePaul University’s College of Law, Refugee and Forced Migrations Studies Program and the Grace School of Applied Diplomacy. The podcast examines new attempts to codify the harmful effects of Title 42 through amending the Fiscal Year 2023 spending bills currently before Congress. Please email or call your elected representative and oppose all of these amendments.

ACTION STEP

  1. Email your Senators and Representative to oppose these amendments. The National Immigrant Justice Center provides information and a simple link to register your voice:  https://immigrantjustice.org/staff/blog/5-facts-about-title-42-why-congress-should-not-codify-trump-era-expulsion-policy
  2. You can call your elected representatives with this helpful script and background information provided by the Center for Gender and Refugee Studies: https://cgrs.uchastings.edu/our-work/action-center-tell-congress-reject-anti-asylum-amendments

Resources:

Our previous podcast on Title 42’s bad science and bad law, Episode 25 “Stop the Pretense That It Is Just About Public Health,” can be found at:  https://lawfulassembly.buzzsprout.com/1744949/10595081-episode-25-stop-the-pretense-that-it-is-just-about-public-health

The source of Yogi Berra’s “It’s déjà vu all over again” can be found at:  https://yogiberramuseum.org/about-yogi/yogisms/

The National Immigrant Justice Center webpage includes additional background information and resources at:  www.immigrantjustice.org

We welcome your inquiries or suggestions for future podcasts.  If you would like to ask more questions about our podcasts or comment, email us at: mission.depaul@gmail.com

 

Lawful Assembly 27: Stop the Burning

SHOW NOTES

This is an interview with Rev. Craig B. Mousin, an Adjunct Faculty member of the DePaul University’s College of Law, Refugee and Forced Migrations Studies Program and the Grace School of Applied Diplomacy. The podcast explores the recent efforts to censor and self-censor books in our public schools and libraries.  It links some of that censorship to a fear of the newcomer and our nation’s failure to legislate comprehensive immigration reform.

ACTION STEP

Thank a librarian and ask how you can help stop the burning.  For more information, the Intellectual Freedom Office of the American Library Association offers resources at: https://www.ala.org/aboutala/offices/oif

RESOURCES

The Washington Post article on self-censorship and national statistics was written by Hannah Natanson, March 22, 2022: “Schools nationwide are quietly removing books from their libraries” at: https://www.washingtonpost.com/education/2022/03/22/school-librarian-book-bans-challenges/

The quote from Fahrenheit 451 can be found at:  Ray Bradbury, Fahrenheit 451 (Simon and Schuster, N.Y., 2012) (Sixtieth Anniversary Edition), p. 134.

Abraham Lincoln described the moral sentiment of a belief that all are created equal in his speech in Springfield, Illinois on July, 10, 1858.  The Speeches of Abraham Lincoln, Including His Inaugurals and Proclamations (Lincoln Centenary Association, NY: 1908), pp. 72-74.  I previously discussed Lincoln’s support of immigration in “Rescinding DACA: More than Just the Dreamers,” Update: Association of Catholic Colleges and Universities Newsletter, (Fall 2017) which can be found at:  https://works.bepress.com/craig_mousin/47/

You can order a copy of All Are Welcome from your favorite bookstore or find it at:  https://www.womenandchildrenfirst.com/search/site/all%20are%20welcome

You may also find a copy of In My Mosque at your favorite bookstore or:  https://www.womenandchildrenfirst.com/book/9780062978707

 

 

 

 

 

 

We welcome your inquiries or suggestions for future podcasts.  If you would like to ask more questions about our podcasts or comment, email us at: mission.depaul@gmail.com

 

 

 

Episode 26: Streamline Rule Precludes a Complete Record


This is an interview with Rev. Craig B. Mousin, an Adjunct Faculty member of the DePaul University’s College of Law, Refugee and Forced Migrations Studies Program and the Grace School of Applied Diplomacy. The podcast examines the federal government’s request for comments on a proposed Interim Final Rule involving adjudication of asylum applications.  It argues that the expedited deadlines and streamlining procedures will prevent asylum applicants from developing a complete record in support of their claims and may make it almost impossible for asylum seekers to obtain legal representation.  The Action Step below lists a link to the Interim Final Rule and the link to upload your comments.  The Resources list several different links to understand the problems with the Interim Final Rule and different templates to assist you draft your comments.

ACTION STEP
You are invited to submit comments with your personal critiques of elements of the law.

Please note, once you click on this link, you will find a “Commentator’s Checklist” at the top of the page which provides helpful guidelines in preparing your comment.  Comments must be filed before midnight, Eastern Daylight Savings time, on Tuesday, May 31.
The full proposed Interim Final Rule

The quote in the podcast from the proposed IFR regarding soliciting public opinion can be found at 87 Fed. Reg. at 18081.  The quote regarding the Immigration Judge receiving a full record can be found at 87 Fed. Reg. at 18098-99.  The quote regarding the basic purpose of the IFR can be found at 87 Fed. Reg. at 18143).

RESOURCES
The National Immigrant Justice Center submitted its comments previously.  You may review their suggestions to provide you with examples of areas of concern.  NIJC invites you to use their comments as a template, but it is important that you provide your own words and ideas with your comments.
NIJC has a shorter summary.
NIJC has also prepared a flow chart to demonstrate the complexity of the proposed rule.
Human Rights first has also provided a summary of its concerns and suggested alternatives.
If you want to prepare comments based on the two critiques in our podcast, you may follow this template below.  You can prepare your letter and upload it at the link provided above:
Submitted via https://www.regulations.gov

Rená Cutlip-Mason
Chief, Division of Humanitarian Affairs
Office of Policy and Strategy
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services
Department of Homeland Security
5900 Capital Gateway Drive
Camp Springs, MD 20588-0009
Lauren Alder Reid
Assistant Director, Office of Policy
Executive Office for Immigration Review
5107 Leesburg Pike, Suite 1800
Falls Church, VA 22041

Re: Procedures for Credible Fear Screening and Consideration of Asylum, Withholding of Removal, and Convention Against Torture Protection Claims by Asylum Officers (03/29/2021)

Dear Chief Cutlip-Mason & Assistant Director Reid,

Provide an introductory paragraph of your interest in commenting and explain your expertise and experience in assisting asylum seekers either individually or your faith-based or community-based organization. 

Determine what parts of the IFR you oppose.  The two we discuss in the podcast might include language similar to the following:

  1.  The Interim Final Rule proposed deadlines and a streamlined process that will prevent asylum seekers from obtaining legal representation or develop a full record documenting their claim.

Provide your examples of how the expedited deadlines will hinder your work.

  1. The Interim Final Rule’s proposed deadlines and streamlined process will prevent many asylum seekers from ever obtaining employment authorization, thus further weakening their ability to pursue all the remedies United States law may make available.

You may share your experiences documenting the importance of employment authorization in ensuring that our legal process works.

The quote from the Purpose of the Refugee Act of 1980.
The quote from the Preamble of the 1951 Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees.

We welcome your inquiries or suggestions for future podcasts.  If you would like to ask more questions about our podcasts or comment, email us at: mission.depaul@gmail.com