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Historically, resettlement numbers often increase slightly in the final month or two of the fiscal year. September is that final month, and with 51,231 refugees resettled so far, we have an outside shot at reaching 60,000 — far from the "ceiling" of 125,000, but also far better than the 25,465 total in fiscal year 2022. Already, this year’s number surpasses the previous three fiscal years combined. Our policy expert Dan Kosten calls it "a very positive sign that the refugee program is on the road to recovery," Kosten said. Now the administration must continue to restrengthen the resettlement system. Resettling 125,000 in a year would require an average of about 10,400 per month. In the meantime, many Americans continue to welcome refugees and asylum seekers in their communities. In Alaska, Catholic Social Services is offering classes to help refugees understand the health system, reports Rachel Cassandra of Alaska Public Media. An elementary school in Indiana is being recognized internationally for its efforts to embrace a growing population of Burmese students, reports Vic Ryckaert of WRTV. And Scott Shumaker of the East Valley Tribune in Arizona reports on the essential assistance to asylum seekers that members of the Spanish-speaking church Iglesia Cristiana el Buen Pastor in Mesa, Arizona, are providing. "I think people have no idea [what refugees are going through]," said volunteer Christina Schreiber. "You see how tired and exhausted they look." Welcome to Tuesday’s edition of The Forum Daily. I’m Dan Gordon, the Forum’s strategic communications VP, and the great Forum Daily team also includes Ashling Lee, Jillian Clark, Clara Villatoro and Katie Lutz. If you have a story to share from your own community, please send it to me at [email protected]. RELUCTANCE — Undocumented immigrant workers who in past years have assisted with hurricane recovery efforts in Florida are now reluctant to come to the state because of its new, restrictive immigration law, Syra Ortiz Blanes reports in the Miami Herald. "We have the will and the desire to go do the work, and we’ll go if we have a guarantee that our rights will be respected regardless of the status of each person," said Santos, an undocumented worker. Catherine Shoichet of CNN and Miriam Jordan of The New York Times covered this phenomenon first. LETHAL COMBINATION — Extreme heat, misinformation from smugglers and strict state enforcement measures are combining to increase migrant deaths along the southwest border, reports Julian Resendiz of Border Report. So far this fiscal year, 58 of the 140 migrant deaths reported by U.S. Border Patrol agents or local law enforcement in El Paso, Texas, were heat-related, most of them in New Mexico desert west of El Paso. 100 NEW CITIZENS — With Welcoming Week under way, 100 people from 30 countries became U.S. citizens at a ceremony at the Indiana State Museum, WTHR reports. U.S. Magistrate Judge Mark J. Dinsmore administered the oath of citizenship, and the event featured various speakers. The oldest in the group, Taiwan-born Shensheng Fu, received an American flag from a representative of the International Center, while the youngest, Biroli Meshak from Congo, led the Pledge of Allegiance. ECONOMIC BENEFITS — In an op-ed in The Hill, economist Nick Sargen argues for additional legal immigration pathways. (He makes a demographic case that particularly resonates with us.) "The message regarding the economic benefits is compelling — namely, increased immigration promotes U.S. economic growth and helps to tackle labor shortages and inflation," Sargen writes. Thanks for reading, Dan
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