National Peace & Justice Ministries E-Memo
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Washington E-Memo
October 7, 2019 Blocking asylum and building walls Twenty-five years ago this month, the Clinton administration launched Operation Gatekeeper which began to militarize the U.S.-Mexico border. Since then, more than 8,000 migrants have perished after being driven to cross in more remote areas. Last month, the Trump administration transferred $3.6 billion to build more border walls and, though the…
Washington E-Memo
August 5, 2019 Announcing essay and video contest Calling all high school students! Our annual essay contest is now open, and we have an exciting change to announce. In addition to essays, we are now accepting short (2-3 minute) videos as well. Prizes of $750 will be awarded for the top essay and the top video. Students are…
Washington E-Memo
July 2, 2019 Restoring Pell Grants to incarcerated students In 1994, Congress passed the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act, also known as the crime bill, in an attempt to be tough on crime. The bill included an amendment to ban Pell Grants for incarcerated students. As a result the number of education programs within…
Washington E-Memo
Shutdown ends – for now On January 25, portions of the federal government that had been without funding for 35 days reopened under a continuing resolution through February 15. The deal came one day after a proposal to pair border wall funding with protections for DACA and TPS recipients failed in the Senate. The bill would have…
Washington E-Memo
January 7, 2019 Looking back at 2018 and ahead to 2019 As we begin 2019, we are grateful for the advocacy work that we have been able to do together with you over the past year. We celebrated reforms to our criminal justice system, legislation on the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the renewal of…
Washington E-Memo
Help us pass criminal justice reforms! President Donald Trump recently voiced his support for a bipartisan criminal justice bill, a revised First Step Act that would provide sentencing and prison reforms. The First Step Act would curb mandatory minimums for many low-level drug crimes, providing judges with more discretion over individual cases. The bill also aims to eliminate the…
MCC Washington Memo 