Margot Worfolk has committed her life to working for peace with justice for all God’s children, especially those who are left out and pushed out by unjust political and economic systems. She first became active with CRLN in 2000 by participating in a delegation to El Salvador, marking the 20th anniversary of the assassination of Monseñor Oscar Romero. There, she fell in love with the courageous Salvadoran people and their struggle for justice, and she also fell in love with Joe Houston. On a later delegation, Margot and Joe were married on a beach in El Salvador! Together Margot and Joe continued to support the work of CRLN by participating in delegations to El Salvador and Cuba, the annual vigils calling for the closing of the U.S. Army’s School of the Americas, and public policy delegations to Washington DC. On one of the DC delegations, Margot met with Republican Congresswoman Judy Biggert, who became convinced to co-sponsor legislation calling for the de-funding of the SOA.  Margot was an active board member of CRLN for many years. She represented CRLN at literature tables at events, called members, and invited tables of friends to CRLN events. Staff frequently sought out Margot for her ability to support staff transition planning.  Margot had many leadership roles on the CRLN Board of Directors, including serving as Chair during the search process for CRLN’s next director. Under her wise and thoughtful leadership, CRLN became stronger and more effective in its mission to promote sustainable economies, just relationships, and human dignity. 

Margot Worfolk ha dedicado su vida a trabajar por la paz con base en la justicia para todos los hijos de Dios, especialmente para aquellos que son excluidos o expulsados ​​por sistemas políticos y económicos injustos. Se unió a CRLN en el 2000 para participar en una delegación a El Salvador, durante el vigesimo aniversario del asesinato del Monseñor Oscar Romero. Allí se enamoró del valiente pueblo salvadoreño y su lucha por la justicia, y también se enamoró de Joe Houston. ¡En una delegación posterior, Margot y Joe se casaron en una playa de El Salvador! Juntos, Margot y Joe continuaron apoyando el trabajo de CRLN al participar en delegaciones a El Salvador y Cuba, las vigilias anuales por el cierre de la Escuela de las Américas del Ejército de los EE. UU. y delegaciones de incidencia en Washington D.C. En una de las delegaciones a la capital, Margot se reunió con la congresista republicana Judy Biggert, a quien se convenció de copatrocinar una medida que buscaba desfinanciar la Escuela de las Américas. Margot fue miembro de la junta directiva de CRLN durante muchos años. Representó a CRLN en mesas informativas en eventos, llamó a miembros e invitó a sus amigos a eventos de CRLN. A menudo, el personal buscaba a Margot por su capacidad para apoyar la planificación de la transición del personal. Margot tuvo muchos roles de liderazgo en la Junta Directiva de CRLN, de la cual fue presidente durante el proceso de búsqueda de la actual directora de CRLN. Bajo su liderazgo sabio y reflexivo, CRLN se fortaleció para ser mas eficaz en su misión de promover economías sostenibles, relaciones justas y la dignidad humana.  

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I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us.  Romans 8:18

 

We here at CRLN take our responsibility to the more vulnerable members of our organization, our families and the larger community very seriously.  We seek to be good global citizens during this unprecedented time of crisis for all of humanity.  We embrace the science behind disease prevention and the wisdom of public health experts as well as the admonishment of our faith traditions to place the interest of “the least of these” above all other concerns.  To that end, our staff have implemented best practices in regard to what is being popularly called “social distancing”.  For the foreseeable future staff will be working from home so that we can minimize exposure for ourselves and more importantly vulnerable loved ones and community members to the rapidly spreading contagious disease known as COVID-19.  We will postpone holding any events that involve public gatherings until further notice or come up with creative ways to make them into online events.  This includes our planned Good Friday Walk for Justice.  Although this is a difficult sacrifice for us as a people and an organization and really strikes at the core identity of who we are and how best to organize to advance our mission, the reality of the moment calls on us to take these unfortunate but necessary measures.

 

But we cannot be satisfied as an organization, as a community and as individuals with simply accepting and following these so-called best “social distancing” practices.  We must endeavor to be creative and explore what it means collectively and individually to practice social distancing + social solidarity.    A crisis like the one we are confronted with encourages all of the worst impulses and tendencies in our society and none of the “better angels of our nature” – xenophobia, fear, social isolation, atomization, selfishness, hoarding, increased state surveillance, eroding of civil liberties, etc.  The standard antidotes to such tendencies – collective mass organizing and action – are exceedingly difficult in these circumstances; but they are not impossible.  We must do all we can do to figure out the ways to make this solidarity concrete, real and safe.  The staff also recognize that we are in a position of privilege with our work.  It is rather easy for us to transfer the bulk of our work activity to our homes.  This is not true for millions of members of the working class in this country and globally.  These workers range from first responders like the nurses who are at the frontlines of the battle against the virus or custodians, food delivery workers and transit employees who remain essential to the safe functioning of our society and do not have the luxury of taking their work home.  Millions of workers in the informal economy – day laborers, domestic workers – face truly dire straits in the current crisis with almost no hope of any help from the state.  As always, these most marginalized workers are predominantly people of color and migrants, those whom our organization is meant to serve. They must be at the forefront of our thoughts at this time.

 

Looking around the globe we are amazed at the creativity and selflessness that common people and even some governments have demonstrated during this crisis to practice social solidarity.  Everything from the beauty of the Italians singing to each other across the balconies of their quarantined homes in ancient Roman and medieval cities that have witnessed many plagues of centuries past, to the Cuban government which welcomed a stranded ship of hundreds tourists in the Caribbean who were denied safe harbor by all others for fear of contagion, to right here at home in the immigrant community of Pilsen where neighbors have signed up to buy groceries for elderly neighbors forced to shelter in place.  Recently, within just days of the realization that the crisis would require new forms of organizing, online networks of labor, community and faith based social justice organizers have sprung up. One Facebook group, the “People’s Coronavirus Response”, went from two people to a network of over nearly 10,000 in a matter of a few days.  A coalition in Chicago led by Arise Chicago, The Chicago Teachers Union, United Working Families, National Nurses United and a host of other groups has rapidly formed demanding that the City of Chicago and the State of Illinois enact a host of measures to provide a safety net for workers who will be displaced in the economic chaos of this crisis. Such developments give us great hope.

 

But there is so much yet to be done.  In particular, we are very much concerned with how the crisis is likely to impact the migrant community in this country.  There are the thousands currently languishing in detention facilities, which, along with the millions in our prisons, are some of the places most vulnerable to a rapid spread of the virus, a catastrophe waiting to happen. Immigration courts have begun to close down, as advocated by both immigration attorneys and immigrant rights organizations for the safety of all involved, but this is also possibly resulting in an increase in migrants and potential asylees facing immediate deportation rather than being afforded the opportunity to have their case heard.  The Trump administration is embracing the xenophobic tendencies of the crisis, referring to the disease as a “foreign” invader and utilizing it to promote their wall building and deportation agenda.  We must not let them get away with such truly evil manipulation of this human tragedy.  Then there are those thousands of Central Americans forced to wait indefinitely in camps on the Mexican side of the border. Mercifully, the virus rates of transmission have so far remained lower in Mexico than in the U.S.; but this is unlikely to last, and these camps are likely to be hit hard when the virus spreads.  Of course, the most direct and brutal impact is the increase in xenophobic-inspired violence, so far mostly targeting Asian-Americans and Asian immigrants, that is on the rise across the country.

 

So, I call on all members of the CRLN community to both be patient with our staff as we adjust to our new working conditions, but, more importantly, to help us navigate the new terrain.  Offer us your creativity and ideas of how we can continue to advance our mission while remaining safe and protecting all. We welcome your input.

 

Sincerely,

Claudia Lucero, Executive Director

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The Trump administration’s recent announcement that it would recognize National Assembly President Juan Guaidó as the “interim president” of Venezuela raises the stakes in already out of control crisis and increases fears of potential U.S. military intervention to back what can only be seen as an attempted coup against Venezuela’s elected president.  It is clear to all serious observers of the situation in Venezuela that the Trump Administration is working closely with the right-wing opposition to find extralegal, non-electoral means to forcibly remove President Maduro from office.

The Chicago Religious Leadership Network on Latin America (CRLN) as always stands in solidarity with the oppressed masses, the poor, the working class, the marginalized communities in all of Latin America.  And as always, we oppose efforts to impose a future on the people of Latin America by their economically, politically and militarily powerful neighbor to the North.  It is a bedrock principle of our organization, as it has been for over 30 years, to oppose U.S. imperialism in all its forms.  We do so again at this moment calling on the U.S. government to do the following:

 

  1. End all threats of and preparations for military intervention in Venezuela
  2. Cut ties with and support for (financial and political) the right-wing opposition currently attempting to thwart the democratic process in Venezuela
  3. End all sanctions against Venezuela
  4. Ensure humanitarian aid and protection for Venezuelan refugees

 

US efforts to undermine the Venezuelan regime over the last 20 years have brought needless hardship and deprivation to the Venezuelan people.  It is time to stop.

 

That said, as people of faith we cannot turn a blind eye to the immense suffering of the Venezuelan people under the current administration of Nicolás Maduro.  We cannot ignore the violations of human rights (both political and economic) and the Venezuelan nation’s slide into authoritarianism.  In all our shared faith traditions, whether Christian, Jewish or Muslim, we are called to recognize the inherent dignity and worth of every human being, to see the image of God in every man and woman.  In this spirit we cannot ignore the brutal reality of extreme, deepening poverty, desperation and state violence that has become the norm for the vast majority of Venezuelans in the last several years.  The current government’s inability to address the economic and political crisis that has led to mass starvation and mass migration has created a situation that is unsustainable.  The Maduro government has met these challenges with violence and repression rather than solutions.  As a result, the gains made by the Bolivarian Revolution nearly two decades ago are rapidly eroding.  Conditions for the most vulnerable in Venezuela are now as bad if not worse than they were before the Revolution.

 

We are all too familiar with how migration is the most glaring symptom of a broken system.  We see it today in Central America.  We are also seeing it in Venezuela.  1.5 to 3 million Venezuelans have fled their country and are living in desperate, appalling conditions in neighboring nations.  It must be noted that the vast majority of these recent Venezuelan refugees are the poor and malnourished, not the elite of Venezuelan society, not the self-imposed “exiles” of the early days of the Bolivarian Revolution.  It is these masses who suffer most as the old elites attempt to reassert their power through an attempted coup, and the new elites who amassed power and wealth through manipulation of the bureaucracies born of the revolution use state violence to maintain their control.  It is these same masses who are already victims of U.S. interference in the politics of Venezuela and will die by the thousands, perhaps tens of thousands if the U.S. resorts to military force to restore its hegemony.

 

Solutions to the current crisis can only come from the Venezuelan working class and poor whose creativity and resilience launched a revolution that gave hope to millions, not only in Venezuela but across Latin America.  Only from these marginalized sectors can a path to a future beyond the poverty and violence that now engulfs their nation be defined.  We here at CRLN we will continue to listen to the voices of these people.  We will continue to look for genuine representatives of the Venezuelan masses with whom we can ally ourselves and make common cause.  In the meantime, we must call out both the Trump Administration and the government of Nicolás Maduro for denying the dignity and worth of every Venezuelan.

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As members, we commit to the following:

  • To build networks of love and protection.
  • To make an impact on US policy toward Latin America and on immigration policy through education and advocacy.
  • To accompany our partners in Latin America who are leading the fight for human rights. We work with organizations of indigenous, African-descended, LGBTQ, women and others who are marginalized or threatened in their countries and are seeking social justice.
  • To build interfaith power for immigrant justice and act against unjust detention and deportations.
  • To participate in expanding sanctuary and meet other people and organizations resisting the criminalization of communities of color.

Membership Benefits Individual Congregational / Organizational
CRLN event tickets Advance notice and

10% discount on tickets

Advance notice, 10% discount on tickets  + 1 free ticket
Training Discounts on trainings Limited free spots in CRLN trainings plus a customized training for your congregation or organization
Input into annual programming Input at annual member meeting Input at annual member meeting
E-Digest, action alerts, issue updates & webinars Monthly E-Digest, action alerts, issue updates and invitations to webinars

 

Monthly E-Digest, action alerts, issue updates, invitations to webinars and promotion of your events related to campaigns
Other resources New member packet, interfaith toolkits and signage available for download

 

New member packet, interfaith toolkits and signage available for download as well as access to the CRLN resource library

 

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(Photo: CRLN staff and OCAD members at CRLN Luncheon, Celeste far right) Reflection by Celeste Larkin, CRLN Public Policy Coordinator, Aug 2012 – Dec 2016: The past four and a half years at CRLN have given me a profound and humbling time of learning, fighting, and advocating alongside a beautiful community that envisions a world where human rights are valued over profit—and, for this, I’m deeply grateful. I’ll be leaving CRLN by the end of this month and will take with me that vision and all that I’ve learned from CRLN staff, board, members, and—most importantly—undocumented people and organizers in Latin America who are fighting for their rights, their lives, and their lands.

As many people can imagine, working at CRLN is more than just having a job. CRLN gives people the chance to take risks and interrupt state violence in the service of transnational solidarity and migrants’ rights. I’ve been able to participate in international delegations wherein committed people from my town learn from and build relationships with organizers in other countries. I’ve helped coordinate speaker tours so that Latin American leaders come to Chicago to share their struggles and connect with people entrenched in parallel struggle here in the U.S. I’ve been able to work with CRLN members to hold our elected officials accountable and speak truth to power, making demands that support CRLN’s vision for world where imperialism & roots of forced migration can be named, checked, and—in the long haul—abolished.

In taking those risks and trusting each other, I’ve been blessed to build a community at this organization and I’m hopeful for the future of this work. That sense of hope is directly inspired by the efforts, principles, and labor of people leading these struggles from the front lines of Latin America and the undocumented community. I feel hopeful because of the base here in Illinois that has made CRLN what it is and that commits to the work ahead when the risks feel great and the country barrels forward toward heightened nationalism. I’m deeply grateful for the work of all of you reading this statement, and I hope you all know that, as we continue learning how to do this work better under ever-changing conditions, I’m thankful that you’re in this world and adding your grain of sand to the mountains being built throughout the hemisphere.

If you have questions about foreign policy and need to be in touch with CRLN staff, please contact Sharon Hunter-Smith at shunter-smith@crln.org and if you would like to be in touch about trade policy, please contact Claudia Lucero at clucero@crln.org. You can also call our office for any reason at 773-293-2964.

Celeste, La Coordinadora de Política Pública, Deja su Posición con Gratitud y Determinación

Escrito por Celeste Larkin, Coordinadora de Política Pública de CRLN, Aug de 2012 – Dic de 2016: Los últimos cuatro años y medio en CRLN me han dado una experiencia profunda y un sentido de humildad mientras aprendía, luchaba, y abogaba al lado de una bella comunidad que imagina un mundo donde los derechos humanos tienen más valor que el beneficio privado—y, por eso, estoy profundamente agradecida. Estaré dejando mi posición en CRLN al final de este mes y tomaré conmigo esta visión y todo lo que aprendí del equipo de CRLN, de nuestra junta directiva, de nuestrxs miembrxs, y—lo más importante—de la personas indocumentadas y organizadores de América Latina luchando por sus derechos, sus vidas y sus tierras.

Como muchxs pueden imaginar, trabajar en CRLN significa más que simplemente tener un trabajo. CRLN da a las personas la oportunidad de tomar riesgos e interrumpir la violencia del estado en el servicio de la solidaridad transnacional y los derechos de lxs migrantes. Yo he podido participar en delegaciones internacionales en las cuales gente de mi ciudad aprende de y construye relaciones con organizadores de otros países. He ayudado a coordinar giras de líderes Latinoamericanxs visitando Chicago para que compartan sus luchas y conecten con personas  involucradas en las luchas paralelas en los EE.UU. He podido trabajar con lxs miembrxs de CRLN para hacer a lxs oficiales públicxs responsables de sus decisiones y para que digan la verdad al poder. Al mismo tiempo, exigiendo que apoyen nuestra visión para un mundo donde el imperialismo y las raíces de migración forzada puedan ser nombradas, combatidas, y—en el largo plazo—abolidas.

Al tomar estos riesgos y confiar uno en el otrx , he sido bendecida al construir una comunidad en esta organización y tengo mucha esperanza para el futuro de este trabajo. Este sentido de esperanza está directamente inspirado por los esfuerzos, principios, y trabajo de las personas en las líneas del frente de estas luchas, desde América Latina hasta la comunidad indocumentada. También siento esperanza por la base aquí en Illinois que ha hecho CRLN lo que es y que se compromete a trabajar aun cuando los riesgos parecen demasiado grandes y el país avanza hacia un nacionalismo intensificado. Estoy profundamente agradecida por todo el trabajo que ustedes leyendo este mensaje han hecho y espero que sepan que, mientras seguimos aprendiendo cómo hacer mejor este trabajo bajo condiciones que siempre cambian, doy gracias que ustedes estén en este mundo añadiendo su granito de arena a las montañas de trabajo construidas por todo el hemisferio.

Si tiene preguntas sobre el trabajo de la política extranjera, póngase en contacto con Sharon Hunter-Smith a shunter-smith@crln.org y si tiene preguntas sobre nuestro trabajo en el asunto de los tratados de libre comercio, póngase en contacto con Claudia Lucero a clucero@crln.org. También pueden llamar a nuestra oficina para cualquier otra razón al numero 773-293-2964.

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CRLN’s Immigration Program invites congregations and faith communities to journey together to become Immigrant Welcoming Congregations. Through prayer, reflection, education, relationship building and action we will welcome immigrants and collectively work to bring that welcoming spirit to the whole community.

The Journey to Become an Immigrant Welcoming Congregation


1. Exploring our Faith:

Start with your faith.  Have an opening session with a group from your congregation to learn about what your faith says about welcoming immigrants and how to talk about immigration issues.


2. Education to Open our Hearts and Minds

Host an educational event in your congregation to expand your understanding of immigration issues and demystify common misconceptions about immigrants and immigration policies.


3. Relationships of Transformation

Create spaces to get to know people directly affected by current

immigration policies and begin to build relationships grounded in love and respect.


4. Prayerful Action

Through prayer and religious practice, find ways to be present with our immigrant sisters and brothers.


5. Affirming Our Commitment

Have a service that blesses and affirms your congregation’s commitment to being an “Immigrant Welcoming Congregation” that engages the larger congregation, celebrates leaders who will help carry the ministry forward, and commit to be a part of the wider interfaith movement working for immigrant justice.

Living Out Our Commitment to being an”Immigrant Welcoming Congregation”


1. Emergency Response

Deportation leads to broken families, children without parents, and families without breadwinners. As people of faith, we have a duty to respond and support the immigrant community in concrete ways.


2. Public Action

When and where we see cases of injustice we will use our collective voice to actively take a public, moral stand for immigrant justice and human rights.


3. Continued Education and Relationships for Transformation

We know that learning is a continuous process and that living out our faith is never complete and we will continue to explore our faith, learn about current immigration issues and build relationships with our immigrant sisters and brothers.


Visit our

Facebook Page

for current news and action opportunities



Click here to return to the Immigration Program’s main web page

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Its All About People!

CRLN is a grassroots organization, working for justice and peace for the poor majorities in Latin America, and depends upon its members and a network of volunteers. Some of the ways volunteers assist CRLN include:

  • helping at CRLN events
  • assembling monthly mailings to CRLN members
  • writing human rights advocacy letters to officials in Latin America and the U.S.
  • organizing educational events and speakers in your congregation or in other organizations
  • hosting visitors from Latin America

Your special talents and interests may be of help in new endeavors – let us know what you can do and we’ll find a way to use your abilities!

Get Involved



You can answer God’s call to walk with the oppressed by getting involved at CRLN in many ways.

If you’re not already a member,

follow this link to learn about becoming one today

.

To learn more about how you can effectively advocate with your elected representatives,

follow this link

.

Change your life by participating in a CRLN delegation.

Learn more by following this link

.

Tell Me More

For more information, to volunteer in the office, or help in other ways, contact Sharon Hunter-Smith at

shunter-smith@crln.org

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CRLN is a community and a network.  We partner and collaborate
with organizations locally in Chicago and Illinois, as well as in other parts
of the U.S. and in Latin America.


Human
Rights


8th Day Center


American Friends Service
Committee


Catholic Relief
Services


Christian
Peacemaking Teams


Church World Service


Ecumenical
Program on Central America and the Caribbean (EPICA)


Fellowship of Reconciliation


InterReligious Task Force on Central
America (Cleveland)


SOA Watch


US
Labor  Education in the Americas Project (US LEAP)


Witness
for Peace


Fair Trade


Chicago Fair Trade



Global
Exchange


Citizens Trade Campaign


TransFair
USA


Public Citizen/Global Trade Watch

Denominational Partners


Pre


sbytery of Chicago


Northern Illinois Conference of United Methodist Church


Illinois Conference of United Church of Christ


Office of Immigrant Affairs of Archdiocese of Chicago


Unitarian Universalist



Immigrant Rights


Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights


Immigrant Youth Justice League


Interfaith Immigration Coalition


Coalición de Derechos
Humanos (Arizona)


Council of Islamic Organizations of Greater Chicago


Jewish Council on Urban Affairs


National
Alliance of Latin American and Caribbean Communities (NALACC)




No More Deaths (Arizona)


Boston New Sanctuary Movement


Oregon New Sanctuary Movement



New Sanctuary Movement of Philadelphia


New York New Sanctuary Movement


Voces de la Fronta – Milwaukee New Sanctuary Movement


Policy, Advocacy and Research


Center for International Policy


Ecumenical Advocacy Alliance


Latin America
Working Group (LAWG)


North American Congress on
Latin America (NACLA)


United States Office on Colombia


Washington
Office On Latin America (WOLA)


Educational Partners (Local Chicago Partners)


Lutheran Volunteer Corps in
Chicago


Latin American Partners

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Among CRLN’s most vital partners are denominations, synods, judicatories and other representations of the institutional church.  The CRLN Advisory Board includes many of the leaders of these organizations.  Advisory Board members assist CRLN with denominational statements regarding Latin America, building relationships within denominations, congregations and communities, and in advocacy with legislators.


The Rev.Dr. Larry L. Greenfield


Interim Conference Minister

American Baptist Churches of Metro Chicago

American Baptist Churches USA


BishopHee-Soo Jung, Ph.D.


Bishop

Northern Illinois Conference

United Methodist Church


Bishop John Manz
Archdiocese of Chicago
Catholic Church


BishopWayne N. Miller


Bishop

Metropolitan Chicago Synod

Evangelical Lutheran Church in America


The Rev.Michael McConnell

Regional Director

Great Lakes Regional Office

American Friends Service Committee


The Rev.Dr. Robert C. Reynolds


Executive Presbyter

Presbytery of Chicago

Presbyterian Church (USA)


The Rev.Dr. Daniel Rodriguez Diaz


Professor Emeritus of Church History

McCormick Theological Seminary


The Rev.Paul Rutgers

Director

Council of Religious Leaders of Metropolitan Chicago


RabbiHerman E. Schaalman


Past President

Chicago Board of Rabbis

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Criterion for Adding a New Program Area to CRLN Work

CRLN works at the intersection of U.S. foreign policy, denominational public policy statements, and the call of human rights and religious communities in Latin America struggling with the hemisphere’s poor majorities seeking economic and social justice.

CRLN staff in consultation with the Coordinating Council, has added programming areas when:

  • U.S. policy is actively harmful to a particular country or group of countries;
  • Human rights and religious leaders in Latin America have challenged these harmful policies and called upon their counterparts in North America as well as U.S. government leaders to change them;
  • Religious denominations have made written statements challenging such unjust policies, especially when ecumenical consensus among various religious denominations has emerged.
  • A strong national policy organization exists taking leadership on the issue to resource CRLN;
  • A local issue specific solidarity group exists in Chicago to resource and partner with CRLN;
  • The Coordinating Council is largely committed to help develop the program area.
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