Refugees // The Observer

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‘Actual people in plight’: ND sophomore reflects on summer spent advocating for asylum-seekers

Zixu Wang and Maria Luisa Paul | Friday, February 7, 2020

When refugees leave their countries from persecution or war conflicts, they do not directly start a new peaceful life after entering the United States. In reality, when they arrive at the border as asylum seekers, the first step upon arrival is the credible fear interview, a 30-minute-long screening with an immigration official to establish whether

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Doing mercy: what we have, what we give

Letter to the Editor | Wednesday, October 30, 2019

We went to the U.S.-Mexico border again today with food and drink and some other supplies. There are more than 2,000 families living in pup tents in the refugee camp in Matamoros, Tamaulipas, Mexico. These are all people who have not been allowed to cross into the United States. I met a priest from the

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Local bishop speaks at Saint Mary’s about being authentically Catholic

Margaret Cicchiello | Thursday, September 19, 2019

Kevin Rhoades, bishop of Fort Wayne-South Bend, addressed students, members of Belles for Life, faculty and members of the South Bend community Wednesday at Saint Mary’s in a lecture entitled “To Be Authentically Catholic is to be Pro-Life.” The talk was part of a series presented by Belles for Life, a student organization that “promotes

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Panelists discuss refugees, far-right in Germany

Tom Naatz | Wednesday, September 26, 2018

In the late summer of 2015, Germany opened its borders to a large number of Syrian refugees who were fleeing their country for Europe. That policy choice has had many ramifications in the nearly three years since. In recent weeks, the city of Chemnitz in eastern Germany has seen an acute backlash against foreigners after

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SMC alumna helps refugees settle in South Bend

Martha Reilly | Wednesday, February 22, 2017

When Hazim Al-Adilee arrived in the U.S. in 2014, his wife Entidhar Abbood was nearly 7,000 miles away in Jordan, having been denied relocation privileges. Now, more than two years later, Abbood’s application to enter the U.S. has still not been approved, as Al-Adilee discussed at a lecture about migration on Tuesday at Saint Mary’s. Al-Adilee

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Mass addresses national attitudes towards immigration

Emily McConville | Tuesday, February 7, 2017

At a Mass for immigrants and refugees at the Basilica of the Sacred Heart on Monday night, associate professor of theology Fr. Daniel Groody said the United States’ and Catholics’ attitude towards immigrants and refugees is of utmost importance. “What is at stake now is not just our politics, but our very salvation,” he said.

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Students respond to uncertainty following Trump’s executive order

Emily McConville | Wednesday, February 1, 2017

In the five days since President Donald Trump signed an executive order on immigration, the approximately 30 Notre Dame students from the affected countries, and the staff who assist them, have been uncertain about their futures. “This is a big change, a big sudden change,” Arman Mirhashemi, a Ph.D. candidate in aerospace and mechanical engineering from

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Awake to glory

Stephen Raab | Tuesday, January 31, 2017

It’s a cliche at this point to note that a lot of celebrities died in 2016 (though from a purely numerical perspective, the past year is far from anomalous). Since we all know the big names, I’d like to focus on one that many of us, myself included, missed. On May 1, Madeleine Lebeau, the

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Dominican sisters reflect on time with Iraqi refugees

Martha Reilly | Friday, April 1, 2016

While the U.S. State Department has issued a warning against travel in Iraq for American citizens, Dominican Sister Durstyne Farnan felt compelled to take on the danger and travel to the country in 2005, in order to demonstrate solidarity with the Iraqi Dominican nuns fleeing religious persecution. Farnan, along with Sister Arlene Flaherty, spoke at

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Unmasking Mary this Lent

Jennifer Vosters | Thursday, February 18, 2016

Growing up, I had a hard time finding a connection to Mary. She’s got more titles — Blessed Virgin, Mother of God, Queen of Heaven, Our Lady of (insert here) — than speaking lines in the Gospels. The images of her on my rosaries showed a flawless face somehow both serene and severe. In prayers, she was

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