Christian college students pilot Students of Welcomehttps://immigrationforum.org/

[link removed]

B Stands for BelmontGood afternoon, 

Our national convening in Nashville last month, Leading the Way, gave a space for one of our newest programs to take part. Students of Welcome exists to give college students the opportunity to have more informed, compassionate, solutions-focused conversations around immigration. Through education, service and advocacy opportunities, they can lead change on their campuses and in their broader communities around immigration by improving our posture towards immigrants. Students of Welcome piloted four chapters in the last academic year, including at Trevecca Nazarene University in Nashville. 

As we prepared for Leading the Way [link removed], Silas, a sophomore at our host school, Belmont University, stepped forward, excited to start a chapter of Students of Welcome at his school. Trevecca and Belmont students partnered together for a conversation on border security and faith, which featured Myal Greene [link removed]., President of World Relief [link removed], and retired Chief Border Patrol Officer Michael DeBruhl [link removed], who is also a Forum Fellow. Myal and Michael were asked how their backgrounds serving overseas in Rwanda and in national security shaped their views on immigration and how they had seen churches step into serving immigrants. An important question for both was: "What role do you believe the Church must take if it is to lead the way in reshaping America’s immigration narrative?" Many Christian students at both colleges are hoping their churches do just that. 

Students of Welcome at Trevecca and Belmont are hoping to have positive conversations with their classmates and model that change is possible. Following Leading the Way, Belmont is working on registering their new student organization along with planning their first event advocating for Afghan allies. Trevecca followed Leading the Way with a salsa dancing social and an advocacy campaign for refugees planned for Homecoming weekend. We are excited to have students from both schools join the wider Forum family in using their voices for better policies to create the kind of country we want to be. 

Leading the Way nurtured an atmosphere of partnership, bringing faith and non-profit leaders, business, law enforcement, national security, students and government experts together to search for solutions. While coming from different backgrounds, every leader agreed that immigrants and refugees should be treated with compassion and that we can have security and sound policy without putting fear into immigrant communities. (Check out the recordings here [link removed]!) 

[link removed] Trevecca junior Ethan Rice interviews Michael DeBruhl and Myal Greene on how security and compassion work together and the current state of global displacement. (Source: Forum)

Today it was announced that President Trump will set the lowest ceiling for refugee resettlement on record [link removed] since the program began 45 years ago at 7,500 refugees. Afrikaners from South Africa are the focus, which is a population that does not broadly fit the definition [link removed] of a refugee. This will exclude persecuted Christians [link removed] and some of those most in need, such as war-torn Sudan, Congo [link removed] and Ukraine. The Forum [link removed] is collaborating with World Relief [link removed] and our partners Women of Welcome [link removed] and We Choose Welcome [link removed] to ask for a higher ceiling of 50,000 and to preserve the pathway to resettlement for those most needing it whether they have fled war, ethnic cleansing, or persecution for their faith. Join the campaign by making three calls today [link removed]. 

Stay committed and hopeful, 

Christy 

Christy Staats
Assistant Vice President of Field and Constituencies
Forum

P.S. The Keepers of the American Dream reception in Washington, D.C. is fast approaching. This year we will honor leaders who lift their communities and champion the contributions of immigrants to our shared future. Register here [link removed] today to join us! 

[link removed]

NEWS CLIPS TO NOTE:

USA TODAY: Ice Crackdown Stuns Chicago with [link removed], but Latin dancers keep spinning, ‘We can’t cancel. [link removed] 

ASIAN IOWAN: A Picnic to Celebrate 50 years in Iowa [link removed] 

CBS NEWS: 2 Illinois National Guard members speak out: "I won't turn against my neighbors" [link removed] 

BLOOMBERG: How to Solve the U.S. Farmworker Shortage, According to Congress. [link removed] 

THE WHEATON RECORD: Wheaton Students Lead Worship Service at Broadview ICE Processing Facility [link removed] 

#

[link removed]

[link removed]    [link removed]    [link removed]    [link removed]

[link removed]

Unsubscribe from this email list [link removed] or opt out from all Forum emails [link removed]

Forum<br>10 G St NE<br>Suite 500<br>Washington, D.C. 20002<br>United States
www.immigrationforum.org [link removed]