PICO Background

• People Improving Communities through Organizing• 60+ faith-based community organizations across US• 17 states• A vehicle for faith-communities to do social justice

work • PICO New Jersey & Camden Churches Organized for

People

PICO’s Approach to Faith-Based Community Organizing

• Building Relationships

• Leadership Development

• Faith Integration & Grounding

JFI/PICO PARTNERSHIP

• Grant through Catholic Campaign for Human Development

• Helped support Justice for Immigrants organizing & advocacy work in 15 dioceses

• Immigrant & Non-immigrant engagement

USCCB Statement in April

• "It is vital that the framework includes a path to citizenship, so that undocumented immigrants can come out of the shadows and into the light and have a chance to become Americans. It gives hope to millions of our fellow human beings.”

Archbishop Gomez, Chair

Committee on Migration

POPE FRANCISUS CONF OF CATHOLIC BISHOPS

STATE CATHOLIC CONFBISHOP / DIOCESE

P P P P P P P P P P PCATHOLIC VOTERS IN THE PEWS

FULL ENGAGEMENT OF CATHOLIC COMMUNITY

Statewide Training March 2-3, 2013

St. Joseph’s Parish Organizing Team, Somers Point

St. Damian Parish Organizing Team, Ocean City

Camden bishop: 'Moral urgency' for immigration reformPhiladelphia Inquirer

40 Vigils at Rep. LoBiondo’s office

Vigils at Rep. Smith’s Office

Al Punto con Jorge Ramos

9-DAY PILGRIMAGE FORCITIZENSHIP

- 160 MILES

- 4 CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICTS

Holy Cross Parish Organizing Team, Bridgeton

Christie Agrees to In-State Tuition for Undocumented Immigrants

12/19/13

Across the Country

• 104 face-to-face meetings with Members of Congress & 352 more with their staff

• 87,107 Phone Calls, emails, postcards, letters into Congressional Offices

• 52,542 people attending public events, pilgrimages and prayer vigils

• 294 national and local earned media stories• Of the 26 House Districts where PICO ran local campaigns:

21 face-to-face meetings, 8 made public comments in support of citizenship, 3 voted against defunding DACA, and 2 signed on to HR 15