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• Corporate Stands
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Corporate Stands

The Sisters of St. Francis, Clinton Iowa have taken the following corporate stands:

Death Penalty

Nuclear Weapons

Immigration Reform

 

Concerning the Death Penalty:

The Sisters of St. Francis, Clinton, Iowa, Associates and Sojourners oppose the death penalty and call for its abolition.

 In furtherance of this position:

 

• We support legislative and other efforts to abolish the death penalty.
• We support efforts promoting a moratorium of the death penalty and a study of its implementation.
• We support legislative efforts to restrict its application, particularly in cases of minors, and persons who are mentally retarded and mentally ill.
• We oppose legislation to broaden or reinstate the death penalty.
• Recognizing the human agony and suffering involved, we support the families of the victims and of those on death row and their families in their journeys of grief, repentance, healing, forgiveness, reconciliation, and / or quest for exoneration.

 

2003

 

 

Concerning Nuclear Weapons:

We, the Sisters of St. Francis of Clinton, Iowa, Associates and Sojourners, oppose the continued maintenance, research, development, and threatened use of the United States arsenal of nuclear weapons.  We call on our government to fulfill our commitments to nuclear disarmament as agreed to in the Non-Proliferation Treaty of 1970 and the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty of 1996.

Rationale:

• We believe in the sanctity of every human life and of all creation.  Nuclear weapons are a grave danger to all forms of life.
• We choose to work for systemic change on behalf of poor and marginalized persons.  The cost and global competition surrounding nuclear weapons keeps individuals and whole societies poor and marginalized.  Currently the US spends an amount equal to nearly half the cost of its Food Stamp Program just to clean up the radioactive waste from new nuclear production and to maintain existing warheads.
• We have committed ourselves to active nonviolence as a way of life and to the promotion of nonviolence in society.  Maintaining, rebuilding and threatening the use of nuclear force make us as Americans a party to intolerable violence.
• We note that sixty years after the nuclear violence perpetuated on Japan, at least eight nations, and perhaps non-national groups as well, possess nuclear weapons. The maintenance and proliferation of nuclear weapons threatens the security of the Earth.

 

Implementation:

• We will bravely publicize this position regardless of the consequences.
• We support efforts to enforce the agreements that our government has made regarding nuclear disarmament.
• We support legislative efforts to eliminate spending on nuclear weapons and to divert those resources to human development.
• We support and will participate in efforts to educate other US citizens regarding the extensive US violations of the Non- Proliferation Treaty.
• We support those called to civil disobedience against the tyranny of nuclear armament.
• We support individuals who are called to publicly confront the "nuclear bullying" done in our name.

 2005

 

Concerning Immigration Reform:

Position:         

We, the Sisters of St. Francis, Clinton, Iowa, Associates and Sojourners stand in solidarity with our immigrant brothers and sisters.

 

We support comprehensive Immigration Reform which provides:

• A realistic path to earned legalization for people in the U. S. without status
• An effective program for new permanent resident petitioners
• A plan for addressing applicant backlogs for permanent residency, with family unity as a priority
• An effective program for temporary workers
• Restoration of due process protections and reformed detention policies
  for those detained in the immigration system
• An effective border policy that is both just and humane
• Enforcement of employment and labor rights for all workers
• Alignment of the enforcement of immigration laws with humanitarian values

We also call upon our government to address the root causes of immigration and long-term solutions involving trade policies, international economic aid, debt relief, wage disparities, taxes and tariffs.

 Rationale:

"Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers, for by doing that some have entertained angels without knowing it."   Heb. 13:2

 

"...we reaffirm our commitment to vulnerable persons who migrate in search of protection or for a better life for themselves and their families."

"…persons on the move should be protected from harm while in transit and

welcomed with hospitality, service, and justice."

"This view is consistent with the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ,

who calls upon all to 'welcome the stranger' and who declared
'for whatever you do to the least of my brethren, you do unto me.'  Mt. 25: 35, 40"

(from the Statement of the Participants in the Regional Consultation on Migration,
U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, Washington, D.C.,  June 4, 2010)

 

"...we celebrate with joy and gratitude the uniqueness of each person by our warmth and hospitality," (from 5. Nature, Spirit, and Purpose, Constitutions, Sisters of St. Francis, Clinton, Iowa)

 

"We see every person as a visible image of the invisible God and as a brother or sister in Christ.  Therefore, we enable people to recognize their particular rights and dignity and to shape their own destinies.  We thus move toward a more peaceful world." (from 44. Ministry, Constitutions, Sisters of St. Francis, Clinton, Iowa)

 

Implementation:

• We will use public forums to speak out on the behalf of our immigrant brothers and sisters.
• We will visibly support our immigrant brothers and sisters.
• We will continue to educate ourselves and others about immigration.
• We will seek to understand facts, as opposed to myths, about immigration.
• We will support and advocate for legislation that will ensure the elements in the above position statement by contacting our legislators and encouraging others to do so.
• We will oppose any proposed federal or state legislation the does not uphold basic human and civil rights.

2011

Join us in TAKING ACTION by supporting the DREAM Act!

Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) has reintroduced the DREAM Act in Congress. The bill would provide undocumented youth with the opportunity to earn permanent resident status provided they entered the United States at a young age and are of good moral character. In December 2010, the DREAM Act was passed by the House of Representatives, but failed to advance in the Senate. Please take this opportunity to support passage of the DREAM Act. Click to TAKE ACTION