Center for Migrant Studies of New York

June 1, 2026 marks the fourth year that the Church celebrates the feast day of John Baptist Scalabrini, following Pope Francis’ recognition of his sainthood on October 9, 2022. It is also the 125th anniversary of Scalabrini’s visit to the United States. These two events intertwine, as Scalabrini’s visit contributed to the reputation that elevated him to sainthood. Scalabrini’s visit to the United States followed twenty years of work on behalf of emigrants.

Credit: Ramaz Bluashvili via Pexels Fourteen Catholic bishops, including the heads of several dioceses along the US-Mexico border, opposed budget reconciliation legislation appropriating $72 billion to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) for immigration enforcement purposes. In their letter of opposition (below), the bishops expressed their “grave concern” with the additional DHS funding.

Statement of the Center for Migration Studies of New York delivered on May 4, 2026 at the Multi-Stakeholder Hearing of the International Migration Review Forum The Center for Migration Studies is a Catholic faith-based organization which focuses upon research and analysis of policies impacting the human rights of migrants.

Gregory Maniatis, Director, Refugees & Migration, Open Society Foundations April 23, 2026 In a guest essay for Demos, Gregory Maniatis argues that the political “centre” is not an ideology but a practice of building coalitions across disagreement. Using immigration as a key example, he contends that progressives failed not due to bad policy but because they avoided honest debate, persuasion, and broad coalition-building, retreating instead into moral certainty and institutional conformity.

The Spring 2025 edition of the International Migration Review (IMR) is now available online and in print through paid or institutional subscription. This edition is thematically sorted into three sections. The first section has articles regarding migration, advanced digital technologies, and the future of work. The second section examines migrant and diasporic social and political identities and actions. The third section present new research on public opinion on immigration and migrants.

A key theme emerging from the 2026 Academic Symposium of the Center for Migration Studies was the need to invest intentionally in the next generation of migration scholars. Students at all levels, including graduate, tertiary, secondary, and even primary, should benefit from evidence-based, rights-oriented education on human migration and population movements, as well as on the policies and programs that shape these dynamics.

We speak out as pastors in border states and beyond concerned about the impact of the Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) recent and ongoing immigration enforcement activities against individuals and families who are without legal status in our country. While we acknowledge the right and duty of a sovereign nation to enforce its laws, we also believe that those laws should be upheld in a manner that protects the God-given human dignity and rights of the human person.

Edward Kissam January 12, 2026 Mehaniq / shutterstock.com About the Author Edward Kissam is a trustee of the Werner-Kohnstamm Family Fund, which focuses on sound immigration policy reform and civic integration of immigrants. He has conducted and published research on migrant and seasonal farmworkers and immigrant integration in the U.S., as well as educational initatives in Afghanistan.

Susan Martin December 18, 2025 Naturalization Ceremony︱Credit: Wikimedia Commons / Michael Quinn About the Author Susan Martin is the Donald G. Herzberg Professor Emerita of International Migration, Georgetown University. This article was first published in the Journal of the San Juan Islands. Naturalization of immigrants in the U.S. is as old as the republic itself and reflects some of the country’s positive and negative history.

The Winter 2025 edition of the International Migration Review (IMR) is now available online and in print through paid or institutional subscription. This edition is thematically sorted in four sections. The first section has a special focus on migration in Africa. The second section investigates immigrant households and family relationships. The third section examines migrant legal status and liminality. The fourth section analyzes the pandemic’s impact on migration.