EAD 2021 is an opportunity to advocate for climate justice and support the global movement centered and led by people and communities most vulnerable to climate impacts due to historic racial and colonial inequalities. #EAD2021 hopes to passionately advocate and reimagine a world that lives out the values of justice, equity, and beloved community. 

EAD will include opportunities for worship, advocacy training and workshops on Latin America (see list of workshops below).  Visit the EAD website to learn more about the event.

Early bird registration ends April 7. You can register at https://attendify.co/ecumenical-advocacy-days-pbfNWPy.  Registration fees range from $15.00 – $50.00.   Please contact Marilyn McKenna at mmckenna@crln.orgif registration fees are a barrier to your participation.

Register for EAD before April 7, 2021 if you are interested in participating in the EAD organized lobby day. This gives the EAD staff time to schedule the meetings. If you register after April 7, you are not guaranteed to have a meeting set up for you.

Please contact Marilyn McKenna at mmckenna@crln.org for more information.

Latin America Workshops at Ecumenical Advocacy Days

Monday 4/19
10am CT — MCC, OXFAM, Bread for the World, CWS

Climate Change as a Driver of Forced Migration from Central America
Climate change is increasingly a driver of forced migration and displacement in Central America. As climate change worsens droughts, hurricanes, and crop diseases in the region, individuals are forced by hunger or lack of economic opportunities to leave their homes. Come hear from organizations supporting communities impacted by or facing risks from climate change in Central America. Learn how climate change intersects with other root causes of migration, what works in helping small farmers and communities adapt to a changing climate, and how you can support U.S. policies to address climate change in the region.
Speakers: Susana Lopez from Pastoral de la Tierra San Marcos, Dulce Gamboa, Barbara Ford Peace Center in El Quiché, or Guatemala cluster coordinator

1:30pm CT – Amazon Watch
What is President Biden’s Agenda in the Amazon Rainforest?
As part of his sweeping climate executive order, President Biden mandated the creation of a U.S. government plan to support protection of the Amazon rainforest and other ecosystems that are important for regulating the global climate. How is the plan shaping up? What proposals have Amazonian Indigenous peoples and other grassroots social movements presented to stop destruction of their rainforest territories? What is the U.S. government’s role in regulating the operations of asset managers and banks that finance destruction and human rights violations in the Amazon? How can Congress be helpful?
Speakers: Patricia Gualinga from Ecuador, Moira Birss from Amazon Watch, Peter Hughes from REPAM.

1:30pm CT — MCC [This is from the Eco-Justice track but we are hoping to cross-list it!]
The impact of border walls on endangered species and sacred lands
Since 2017, billions of dollars have been spent to construct new walls on the U.S.-Mexico border. Construction has caused irreparable harm to public lands from Texas to Arizona, extracting millions of gallons of precious groundwater in the desert, encroaching on indigenous lands, severing migration routes and otherwise imperiling protected and endangered species. Dozens of laws that protect the environment, public health, and sacred lands were waived to speed construction. Find out how you can urge the Biden administration and your members of Congress to respond.
Moderator: Tammy Alexander, Director of National Advocacy and Program, Mennonite Central Committee U.S. Panelists: Jennifer Johnson, Border Policy Advisor, Southern Border Communities Coalition, Tricia Cortez, Executive Director, Rio Grande International Study Center, Scott Nicol, Assistant Professor at South Texas College (McAllen) and co-author of two ACLU reports on the history and impacts of walls along the U.S.-Mexico border

Tuesday 4/20
1:30pm CT — LAWG/ELCA
Time for Progress: Advocacy for Just U.S. Foreign & Migration Policies towards Latin America
With a relentless focus on stopping migration, U.S. policy in the last few years has ignored many human rights challenges in the Western Hemisphere, including corruption, weak rule of law, and threats faced by environmental activists, indigenous peoples, women, and the LGBTQ+ community. Now we have the opportunity to restore asylum, protect migrants, and address the root causes of migration for those fleeing Central America and Mexico. There will also be time to ask questions about what we can do to fully reopen diplomatic relations with and travel to Cuba, protect peace in Colombia, and ask our government to prioritize protecting human rights and environmental defenders throughout the Americas. Come discuss with advocates how together we can build a more just immigration and foreign policy towards Latin America in this pivotal year.
Speakers: Lisa Haugaard & Daniella Burgi-Palomino (LAWG), Joaquin Mejia (Jesuit Center ERIC, Honduras), Melissa Vertiz Hernandez, Secretaria Tecnica, Grupo de Trabajo de Politicas Migratorias

CRLN is seeking congregations to participate in the Days of Prayer and Action for Colombia in April and May of 2021. We will distribute educational resources on Colombia’s Peace Process, the need to implement it fully, and the ever-growing number of victims.  We can work with you to help plan virtual worship and action opportunities for your congregation in April and May. For more information contact Marilyn McKenna at mmckenna@crln.org

Join us on March 24 at 4 PM PT // 6 PM CT // 7 PM ET for “Indigenous Peoples’ Human Rights in Migration,” a webinar featuring Juanita Cabrera Lopez (Maya Mam), Luis Marcos (Q’anjob’al Maya), Giovanni Batz (K’iche’ Maya). Please share with your networks!

REGISTRATION: https://bit.ly/IndigenousHumanRightsWebinar
TAKE ACTION: https://bit.ly/IndigenousHumanRightsAction

INTERPRETATION: Mam Maya, Spanish, English
CLOSED CAPTIONS: Spanish & English

Cuban families in the U.S. initiated a world-wide call for car and bike caravans to say: “End the U.S. sanctions that separate and hurt Cuban families.”  On Sunday October 31 Chicago will join other U.S. cities and many more around the world to support them!

The Caravan will meet at 12 pm (noon) on Sunday, October 31

Assemble at Cermak Plaza
southeast corner of Cermak and Harlem, Southside of McDonalds in Berwyn

  View and download route map here

Statements of solidarity at kick off.  Bring signs to decorate your vehicle.

For more information:  630-915-0654  

Register at http://tiny.cc/crlnwebinar2

Join us to learn more about advocacy campaigns to gain permanent residency for current TPS holders and to expand TPS to include people from more countries.

After you register you will receive an email from Alianza Americas with zoom information.

Register at https://tinyurl.com/crlnwebinar1

Plan to join us for this informative zoom update on immigration legislation and executive actions.

You will receive an email from ICIRR after you register with the zoom link.

Good Friday Walk for Justice: Rise Up and Roll Away the Stone! This event stems from the Christian tradition of the Stations of the Cross, where Jesus walked to his execution.  Who is being crucified today and what “stones” block their pathway to new life? At each station, we will name a particular form of injustice and call for transformation. April 2 marks this event’s 41st year, and, like last year, we will participate in the event online. Register for this event here!

This Good Friday, our collective community remembers that we belong to each other. We believe we have the power to rise up together and lean into the strength of our foundational bonds of justice for all.

We have the power to roll away stones of white supremacy, greed, and state violenc e. As we roll the stones away, we commit to co-create systems in which resources are shared, allowing our imaginations to generate radically new ways of living and thriving in a more just society.

We believe that the stone of injustice will be rolled away in our rejection of the status quo. As Easter people we recommit ourselves to choose actions of trans- formation. Together we pledge our efforts to bring about greater justice for all peoples and Earth itself.

Join us as together we reflect, pray, proclaim and celebrate the many ways that together we are Rolling the Stones Away.

To learn more about the walk go to walkforjusticechicago.com.

To support this year’s Walk, make checks payable to CRLN (memo GFWalk) and mail to CRLN, 5655 S. University Ave, Chicago 60637 or online: http://bit.ly/3rHuesZ

If you can’t join us for the zoom worship service you can watch a video and download the prayer booklet at https://crln.org/gfwj/

World Premiere of La Lucha Sigue a new film about Honduran land defenders followed by a panel discussion with Bertha Zúniga Cáceres and Miriam Miranda

In Honduras, the most dangerous place in the world to be a land defender, the Lenca and Garífuna people are not backing down. They are fighting to uphold their rights and Indigenous and Black cultures in the face of state backed megaprojects and narco-traffickers who seek to assassinate them, destroy their lands, and erase their existence. Register to watch the WORLD PREMIERE of La Lucha Sigue at 2:00 pm CT Saturday March 20 as part of the Building Movements in Defense of Life, a free bilingual film festival featuring true stories of resistance to industrial capitalism.  Stay after the film for a panel featuring the protagonists of the film, Bertha Zúniga Cáceres and Miriam Miranda on Saturday at 3:30 PM CT.

On Sunday at 3:30 PM CT Bertha and Miriam will join a panel with all the women featured in the film festival. You will need to register for the Sunday panel separately and select large group discussion.  See the whole schedule and register at:  https://www.mutualaidmedia.com/schedule