June 1-5, the Caucus led a group of Episcopalians from across the U.S. on the first Migration with Dignity Pilgrimage. The pilgrimage included a daily prayer vigil at an immigrant detention center, starting in New Mexico and concluding in Texas to:
-expose the cruelty and trauma of ICE detention, particularly family and child detention;
-bear witness to the suffering of all harmed by the detention system;
-and call for a new immigration system centered on “Migration with Dignity.”

More than 200 immigrant detention centers across the U.S. imprison noncitizens, including mothers and children, and the current administration is rapidly expanding the detention system and resuming family detention. Detention inflicts lasting psychological and physical harm, especially on children who are detained or have a parent detained.

ICE detention centers are taxpayer funded and often run by for-profit corporations; U.S. elected officials and taxpayers bear responsibility for this system and for replacing it with a humane system that respects basic rights and dignity. This pilgrimage shines a light on the cruelty and injustice that taxpayers support and aims to inspire compassionate action. As followers of Jesus, who grieved with the hurting and proclaimed freedom for the oppressed, the pilgrims stand in solidarity with impacted community members and uplift the Episcopal Church’s commitment to end immigrant detention.

The pilgrims included clergy and lay persons from Texas, New Mexico, Georgia, Washington D.C., Virginia, and California. They traveled to the following areas:
June 1 - Estancia, NM / June 2 - El Paso, TX / June 3 – Sierra Blanca, TX and Ojinaga, Mexico / June 4 – San Antonio, TX / June 5 – Dilley, TX. 

On Wed. June 4, the pilgrims shared stories at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church, San Antonio, at 5:30pm and held a vigil at 6:30pm in the sanctuary to honor those formerly detained at Pecos Children's Shelter in Pecos, Texas.

We are grateful to Presiding Bishop Sean Rowe and President Julia Ayala Harris for their strong statement of support for immigrants and refugees, in response to Executive Orders that threaten their safety and survival. Their letter was sent to the church on January 21. 

Caucus members serving as deputies to the 81st General Convention gathered for the first time over lunch in Louisville, Kentucky. The caucus Co-Conveners were The Rev. Leeann Culbreath, Diocese of Georgia, and Rob Coulston, Diocese of Lexington. The caucus currently has over 30 members, made up of laypersons, deacons, and priests.