CV NEWS FEED // A critical humanitarian aid project for legal migrants and asylum seekers run by the Catholic community in Tucson has announced it will no longer receive federal aid.
Bishop Edward Weisenburger stated in a video message released on Youtube last Thursday that with federal lawmakers at an “impasse” over whether to continue sending funds to border states, the Diocese of Tucson’s Casa Alitas and other migrant services will no longer be able to function at full capacity.
According to local reports, the operation’s costs “exceed a million dollars a week, and funds are expected to run out by the end of March.” Program Director Diego Piña Lopez stated in the report that aid costs are approximately $105 per person.
“While we anticipate with great sorrow at not being able to serve all who arrive at our door, we will adapt the best we can, even if we can only serve a far smaller number,” the bishop said.
Casa Alitas has served as a shelter for migrant families and asylum seekers since 2014. Volunteers at the house offer housing, food, and other necessities to migrants after their release from ICE and Border Patrol Detention.
According to the organization’s website, Casa Alitas began as a response to the influx of migrants who were being dropped off at the Tucson Greyhound Bus station: “What began as a few people from local churches coming together to bring food to the bus station, became an entire formalized program and welcoming shelter space.”
Casa Alitas has served over 180,000 refugees as of 2023.
