{"id":6580,"date":"2025-02-12T05:18:00","date_gmt":"2025-02-12T05:18:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dev.maryknollsociety.org\/magazine\/?p=6580"},"modified":"2026-04-08T05:22:59","modified_gmt":"2026-04-08T05:22:59","slug":"sisters-in-mission-alarmed-by-gutting-of-us-foreign-aid","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dev.maryknollsociety.org\/magazine\/sisters-in-mission-alarmed-by-gutting-of-us-foreign-aid\/","title":{"rendered":"Sisters in Mission Alarmed by Gutting of US Foreign Aid"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

By Chris Herlinger and Gail DeGeorge, Global Sisters Report<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sisters active in ministry at the grassroots, as well as advocacy work at the United Nations, say they are alarmed by the Trump administration\u2019s draconian gutting of U.S. foreign aid funding, calling the action shortsighted, unjust and an affront to ethical and moral values.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And, they say, lives are in the balance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt\u2019s an absolute disaster,\u201d said Sister Delia Marie \u201cDee\u201d Smith<\/a>, a Maryknoll sister active in HIV and health ministries<\/a> in Pajapita, in southwest Guatemala near its border with Mexico. \u201cIt\u2019s causing chaos; it\u2019s increasing poverty.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cLives are definitely under threat, especially people living with HIV,\u201d Sister Smith told Global Sisters Report Feb. 7.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

U.S. foreign aid saves lives around the world<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Sister Barbara Bozak, United Nations representative for the Congregation of Sisters of St. Joseph<\/a>, said \u201cthere is nothing about justice here,\u201d and that \u201cthis will not help the marginalized.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cPresident [Donald] Trump calls himself the \u2018common sense president,’\u201d said Adrian Dominican Sister Durstyne \u201cDusty\u201d Farnan, a representative to the U.N. for the Dominican Leadership Conference<\/a>. \u201cBut what\u2019s behind the common sense here?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cDo we want the people of South Sudan<\/a> to die?\u201d she said, citing one example of a country struggling from years of war and conflict<\/a> and which depends on U.S. foreign assistance for a host of services, including food aid.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The main target of the Trump administration is the U.S. Agency for International Development, or USAID<\/a>, which provides most of the humanitarian and foreign assistance by the United States. Following plans for most of the agency\u2019s staff to be laid off, Trump on Feb. 7 demanded that the agency be shut down, citing unspecified fraud and corruption, The New York Times<\/em> reported.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Earlier in the week, on Feb. 3, the White House said that for decades \u201cthe United States Agency for International Development (USAID) has been unaccountable to taxpayers as it funnels massive sums of money to the ridiculous \u2014 and, in many cases, malicious \u2014 pet projects of entrenched bureaucrats, with next-to-no oversight.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The elimination of USAID funding is having a grave ripple effect, with numerous Catholic humanitarian agencies bracing for cuts that could imperil their work, including Catholic Relief Services, which might see a 50% reduction in its overall budget, NCR<\/em> reported earlier this week.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In one example of specific programs being affected, Annemarie O\u2019Connor, director of Passionists International at the U.N.<\/a>, said USAID cuts will immediately affect hundreds of people receiving HIV and tuberculosis screening treatment at one hospital in the Haitian capital of Port-au-Prince, which has ties to Passionists congregations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Loss of foreign aid will roll back hard-won health gains<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

However, O\u2019Connor later told GSR<\/em> that she was told by a hospital staffer that the hospital was granted a waiver to continue work during a 90-day review of USAID programs, and that all hospital employees are \u201cback attending patients.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

On Jan 28, Secretary of State Marco Rubio had declared a waiver for \u201clife-saving humanitarian assistance\u201d which applies \u201cto core life-saving medicine, medical services, food, shelter, and subsistence assistance, as well as supplies and reasonable administrative costs as necessary to deliver such assistance.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Even so, CNN reported that USAID staffers say \u201cthat\u2019s not reflective of the situation on the ground\u201d and that almost \u201call USAID humanitarian assistance programs remain stopped in their tracks, they said.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Calling the sudden decision to gut USAID a \u201ccapricious act,\u201d O\u2019Conner said it is disturbing how little thought was put into \u201chow this will affect human lives.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sister Smith said the Guatemalan government has received \u201ctremendous support\u201d from USAID, especially in services treating HIV and tuberculosis.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But the cuts to USAID services \u201care being felt immediately with two of our local HIV clinics losing staff overnight,\u201d said Sister Smith, trained as a teacher and HIV counselor.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

She told GSR<\/em> that one clinic has had to lay off its community outreach educators who are responsible for following up with those who have abandoned their treatments or are too poor to pay transport costs to the clinics to pick up their medicines. \u201cThese are people in remote villages who rely upon the educators to take their antiretroviral medicines to their homes,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The drastic actions by the U.S. will roll back years of gains on HIV\/AIDS treatment and prevention among other impacts, several sisters and others interviewed said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Security and economic interests jeopardized<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

In addition, the U.S. is jeopardizing its economic and security interests, Liz Schrayer, president and CEO of the U.S. Global Leadership Coalition<\/a>, warned in a Feb. 5 statement. The organization has a \u201cTake Action<\/a>\u201d page on its website, urging people to write to their members of Congress. \u201cWhile it makes sense for any new Administration to review U.S. foreign policy and national security programs to ensure alignment with its agenda and priorities,\u201d the Take Action introduction says, \u201cthe non-surgical freeze and dismantling of USAID is already jeopardizing America\u2019s safety, strength, and prosperity.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

America\u2019s rivals \u2014 including China, Russia, Iran, and North Korea \u2014 will \u201cfill the vacuum\u201d that the U.S. leaves behind, warned the coalition, which brings together more than 500 businesses and non-profits from around the country. Already, food and medical aid is being allowed to spoil, threats from disease monitoring for ebola, bird flu and other outbreaks are stopped and stopping partnerships with Pacific Island nations is ceding ground to China, it said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"A
A woman carries food provided by U.S. Agency for International Development in Pajut, South Sudan, March 17, 2017. Catholic Relief Services has provided food assistance, with USAID funding, to communities and people returning to the area after being displaced during violence in 2013. (CNS photo\/Nancy McNally, Catholic Relief Services)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Global health at risk, especially for HIV\/AIDS care<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Among sisters at the U.N., Trump\u2019s actions have \u201creally set off alarm bells. The outreach for USAID is enormous,\u201d said one sister representing her congregation at the global body who is originally from southeast Africa and who has decades of ministry experience in the region.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Efforts being funded in Africa include health and HIV\/AIDS programs. \u201cThis raises horrors for me,\u201d said the sister who, because of the current political climate, did not want to be publicly identified.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Like her sister colleagues at the United Nations, the sister is worried about the impact the cuts could mean for the U.N.\u2019s ambitious Sustainable Development Goals<\/a> which U.N. officials and others, including Catholic sisters, have warned are already endangered in part because of economic and social setbacks caused by the global COVID-19 pandemic.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The U.S. decision to pull out of the World Health Organization<\/a> is also alarming, the sister said, and seems to suggest that the Trump administration believes health care is a commodity rather than a universal human right.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The New York Times<\/em> on Feb. 7 carried a spirited defense of the besieged agency from its former director, Samantha Power. In an op-ed piece, Power wrote: \u201cOut of the $38 billion that U.S.A.I.D. spent in fiscal year 2023, nearly $20 billion was for health programs (such as those that combat malaria, tuberculosis, H.I.V.\/AIDS and infectious disease outbreaks) and humanitarian assistance to respond to emergencies and help stabilize war-torn regions.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A monthly global health networking call on Feb. 5 organized by the Catholic Health Association<\/a> turned into a session of lament and worry as participants shared the impact that the Trump administration\u2019s actions in gutting foreign aid, dismantling USAID, freezing federal grants and muzzling federal health care agencies are already having on their organizations and the people they serve.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Fearful of retribution, some asked to not be identified or quoted.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Foreign aid earns goodwill for the U.S.<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Even those not directly affected by the drastic cuts are gravely concerned because the impact is widespread. A four-part blog published Feb. 4 explains the importance of USAID on global health, foreign aid and what is happening now.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cForeign aid \u2014 91% of which is administered through USAID \u2014 is a key strategy to fight terrorism and protect Americans and our allies,\u201d part of the blog said. \u201cIt also alleviates poverty and saves the lives of people living amid war and the aftermath of natural disasters, and builds economic development in low-resource areas.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The blog was published to give people a background on the situation, said Erica Smith, executive director of Hospital Sisters Mission Outreach<\/a>, on the call.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cOur role is to be a supporter, to be an advocate and a place where there can be calm and rational discussion rooted in our values of compassion,\u201d she said. \u201cIt\u2019s a time when we work together, stick together and really work as a community for the betterment for everyone in this world, particularly those who don\u2019t have the voice or resources that we happen to have.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Some participants on the call noted that the changes were being portrayed publicly as \u201creasonable\u201d when the full ramifications are much more devastating.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The halt in grants, suspension and furloughing of USAID and health care agency personnel means that waivers for humanitarian need being publicly touted are meaningless since there is no one to authorize the payments.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There are questions if work already performed will be paid for. Critical programs, such as a vaccination partnership with faith leaders that was nearing completion, are now halted. \u201cThere\u2019s a lot being set in motion that\u2019s going to be hard to reverse,\u201d said one participant.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cEvery day that relief doesn\u2019t happen, lives will be lost needlessly,\u201d said Walter Ulrich, president and CEO of Medical Bridges<\/a>, a Houston-based nonprofit that provides medical equipment and supplies to 106 countries. The organization doesn\u2019t receive U.S. funding or grants, but that doesn\u2019t mean it\u2019s not impacted, he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In addition to the huge humanitarian impacts, the actions are jeopardizing the interests of the U.S. in competing with China and other adversaries. \u201cOne of the things our country has been consistent with is providing aid around the world,\u201d he said in an interview. \u201cThat offsets some of the work China is doing, which is both very clever and much less beneficial.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Speed and scope of cuts cause chaos, confusion<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Assessing the effectiveness of U.S. foreign aid is understandable and desirable, several participants on the call noted. But the speed and scope of the administration\u2019s actions are causing chaos and confusion.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For example, ships with medical supplies cannot be unloaded. Vaccines ready to be distributed can\u2019t be administered.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI would never disagree with reforming and improving U.S. foreign aid,\u201d Ulrich said. \u201cOnly one needs to do it in a thoughtful way and not in a way that undermines the health care and livelihoods of people around the world without giving time for an alternative.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Amplifying the impact of faith-based health partners is one way to counter the misinformation and \u201cspurious comments\u201d about the contribution of faith and development organizations, one participant said. Finding ways to speak around the administration\u2019s \u201chot button\u201d verbiage is another. An organization may not be able to talk about climate change, but they can cite how weather patterns change disease and service demands.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Another shift will be from a \u201cvalues-based\u201d approach to aid to \u201ctransactional development,\u201d one participant said. \u201cWe\u2019re thinking of what might emerge in the development sector is more transactional development \u2014 if you want a project, what are you giving, what are you asking for, what is in the deal. So a shift from values-based to transactional is something we\u2019ll talk more about,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Several participants closed their remarks noting that it was important to stay spiritually and emotionally grounded in tumultuous times. \u201cIn the heart of it, in the darkness, we have to be light. So I would like to encourage all of us to remember: When confronting darkness, do not forget the power of the light that we hold.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This story, which ran originally<\/a> as part of the <\/em>National Catholic Reporter\u2018s <\/em>Global Sisters Report and is run here with permission, has been updated to include more information on waivers for life-saving humanitarian assistance.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Featured image: Maryknoll Sister Delia Marie Smith (second from left) congratulates graduates of a training program for community legal promoters in Pajapita, San Marcos, Guatemala, on August. 15, 2024. The promoters, trained by Sister Smith and the staff of an HIV\/AIDS prevention and treatment program she founded, will serve in their communities to support victims of domestic violence, HIV\/AIDS patients and people experiencing discrimination. (Octavio Dur\u00e1n\/Maryknoll magazine\/Guatemala)<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Maryknoll Sister Dee Smith and other religious serving overseas attest that the world\u2019s most vulnerable people are endangered by funding cuts.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":153,"featured_media":6581,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_eb_attr":"","_eb_data_table":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[25],"tags":[2642,2644,291,2643,2646,2645,1083,2326,396],"class_list":["post-6580","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-featured-stories","tag-chris-herlinger-and-gail-degeorge","tag-global-sisters-report","tag-hiv-aids","tag-maryknoll-sister-delia-marie-smith","tag-secretary-of-state-marco-rubio","tag-sustainable-development-goals","tag-trump-administration","tag-u-s-agency-for-international-development-usaid","tag-united-nations"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nSisters in Mission Alarmed by Gutting of US Foreign Aid - Maryknoll Magazine<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"noindex, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Sisters in Mission Alarmed by Gutting of US Foreign Aid - 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