Trocaire to Sponsor Panel Discussion on Immigration

Catholic Education Events Five Critical Concerns Mercy Values News Press Release Public Event

Public Event is Thursday, Nov. 15 at Mercy Center in Buffalo

 

Trocaire College’s Office of Mission, Ministry and Service is sponsoring a panel discussion on the topic of immigration this Thursday, Nov. 15. The event will be held from 2-3:30 p.m. at the Mercy Center auditorium (625 Abbott Road, across the street from the college), and the public is welcome and encouraged to attend.

The discussion, titled “Immigration: Welcoming the Stranger in an Age of Displacement,” will feature four panelists with unique perspectives on this issue, one of the most pressing and vital of our time. They are:

  • Bassam Deeb, Ph.D., Trocaire College President
  • Solomon Nelson Ph.D., English faculty member at Trocaire
  • Sister Janet Korn RSM, Director of the Institute Justice Team of the Sisters of Mercy
  • Sara Safarzadeh-Amiri, MD, primary care physician and Director of Community Engagement at Jericho Road Community Health Center.

The Sisters of Mercy founded Trocaire College, and immigration is one of the order’s Five Critical Concerns. This panel discussion will allow exploration of the issue through the lens of Catholic social teaching.

“Millions of people worldwide have been forced from their homes, displaced by war, natural disasters, social upheaval, persecution, and rampant violence. Others—voluntary migrants—seek a better life and more opportunity for themselves and their families,” explains Bob Shearn, Trocaire’s director of Mission, Ministry and Service. “Both groups, upon seeking admittance to a host country, often spur questions and in some cases raise deep-seated fears among native-born citizens.”

The panel will explore many of those questions and fears as they relate to immigration within the context of the United States. Above all, the panelists will examine the particular role and responsibility of developed countries, stable societies and communities of faith as they seek to respond to the suffering and plight of the displaced who are searching for refuge, stability, hope and opportunity.