Arizona/Mexico Border

Border Links: Sanctuary and Solidarity

Program Calendar

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UUCSJ partners with BorderLinks to offer journeys to the U.S.-Mexico border.

Experience a week-long immersion in the realities of the border, including both the deep injustices and the inspiring community responses to this ongoing crisis.

This program is available for adult congregational groups, youth groups, and multi-generational groups.

For Border programs for Religious Leaders, please click here. For Youth programs, click here.

Why go to the border?

Amid rising xenophobia and threats against basic human rights, UUCSJ’s “Sanctuary and Solidarity” journey offers a timely chance to deepen your capacity to practice effective solidarity.
Through a visit to the border wall, meetings with grassroots partners, listening to migrants tell their stories, and walking the dangerous desert paths that so many risk while crossing the border, you will experience the depth of the immigration crisis firsthand.
You’ll return home inspired and prepared to join emerging campaigns to renew, expand, and strengthen “sanctuary” in the time to come.

Who can go on a BorderLinks program?

We regularly schedule border trips for religious leaders, and we can organize a trip for any congregation or youth group with a minimum of 10 participants.

UUCSJ programs are also open to participants from any background who are interested in exploring the connection between spirituality and social justice. Individuals are welcome to register for any upcoming trip to the border, and we will contact the leader of the congregation to see if they are open to have additional participants.

If your congregation or youth group is interested in organizing a trip to the border, please contact Chris Casuccio, ccasuccio@uucsj.org.

What are the upcoming trips to the border?

All
Upcoming
2016
2017
2018

Tue
13
Nov
2018
Sun
18
Nov
2018

Sanctuary & Solidarity Border Witness
Tucson, AZ
All Souls Church, Unitarian - Washington, DC - Learn More

Register by September 9th
Wed
28
Nov
2018
Mon
03
Dec
2018

Sanctuary & Solidarity Border Witness
Tucson, AZ/Mexico
First Parish In Concord, MA - Learn More

Register by September 23rd

How much does a border trip cost?

Cost: Total cost depends on number of days and adult vs. youth. Please see the list below. Note these costs do not including airfare. Additional expenses may include passport application or renewal and vaccinations.

Adult journeys generally cost between $800 and $1,100 per person
Youth journeys generally cost between $700 and $1,000 per person

Financial aid is available for up to 50% of program costs for adults and 75% of program costs for youth based on need and is awarded on a first come, first serve basis. Please fill out the financial aid request section of the program application.

For additional fundraising we recommend that participants use Faithify, the Unitarian Universalist crowd funding website, which can help either congregations or individuals raise money to cover their costs.

What is BorderLinks?

BorderLinks is UUCSJ’s main partner for this immersion journey program; it is a binational, nonprofit educational organization at the U.S.-Mexico border. The organization focuses on cross-border relationship-building opportunities, immigration issues, community formation and development, and social justice in the borderlands between Mexico, the United States, and beyond. BorderLinks has extensive experience designing programs, and nearly 1,000 individuals participate annually in BorderLinks learning opportunities.

Frequently Asked Questions

Click here to download the Frequently Asked Questions for BorderLinks journeys.

Sample Itinerary

Click here to download a sample itinerary for a BorderLinks journey.

Please note this itinerary may change from group to group, and for youth groups we will work to customize the itinerary to the group’s needs and interests.

Resources for learning more about immigration: