“Latinos in this community have a target on their backs.”

“At a time when we are facing the ‘highest levels of displacement on record,’ according to the United Nations Refugee Agency, we urge you to increase the refugee resettlement cap and to admit as many refugees as possible within that cap," the letter reads.

Arrests of immigrants in the U.S. illegally are increasing nationwide, and the result is more children are losing—or fearing they will lose—a parent through detention or deportation.

“Our own people don’t have dignity. There’s no security. There are thousands of malnourished kids. How can we offer to be a safe country if it isn’t even safe for our own citizens?”

The pope's appeal came after what authorities have called the worst shipwreck on the Mediterranean this year.

For U.S. charities affiliated with the Roman Catholic Church, the past year has tested the resilience of their fundraisers and the loyalty of their donors in unprecedented fashion.