Statement from Bishop Oscar A. Solis on New Immigration Policies

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Bishop Oscar A. Solis

The Most Reverend Oscar Solis, Bishop of the Catholic Diocese of Salt Lake City, responded to recent decisions by the Trump administration to deny asylum to domestic violence victims and separate children from their parents as a matter of policy with the following statement:

“I join my brother bishops in the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops in urging the administration to rescind these policies that tear at our core values as a nation. The United States has long upheld the family as the core unit of civil society. We are, and must continue to be, a beacon of hope for families unable to find basic protections and pathways out of poverty within their home countries.

“While the U.S. has a right to protect its borders, it has a moral obligation to do so through means that preserve families and the dignity and sanctity of all life. Refusing asylum to women escaping from domestic violence and separating children from their parents is an unnecessary and aggressive act against human life, and unfathomable from a country with a heart as strong as ours.

“For decades, the U.S. bishops have advocated for sensible reforms to our long-broken immigration system. I now not only urge our members of Congress to implement reforms, but implore this nation to enforce existing laws with compassion, with recognition that we are the last hope for so many, and with the full understanding that individual human lives are at the heart of immigration issues.”