Any proposal to change Social Security must provide a decent and reliable income for these workers and those who depend on them. Affordable and accessible health care is an essential safeguard of human life and a fundamental human right. We support health care that is affordable and accessible to all. The lack of safe, affordable housing is a national crisis. The first priority for agriculture policy should be food security for all.
Farmers deserve a decent return for their labor.
Our priority concern for the poor calls us to advocate especially for the needs of farm workers whose pay is often inadequate and whose housing and working conditions are often deplorable. We also urge that public policies support the practice of sustainable agriculture and careful stewardship of the earth and its natural resources. We support policies that protect the land, water and air we share, and encourage environmental protection, sustainable development and greater justice in sharing the burdens of environmental neglect and recovery. The gospel mandate to love our neighbor and welcome the stranger leads the Church to care for immigrants, both documented and undocumented. This concern leads us to promote a greater sense of moral responsibility, to advocate a reduction in violence in the media, to support gun safety measures and reasonable restrictions on access to assault weapons and handguns and to oppose the death penalty.