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September 2023 Newsletter

FOR OVER 110 YEARS, ADVANCING THE RIGHTS AND LIVES OF REFUGEES AND IMMIGRANTS

AFGHAN RESETTLEMENT REPORT RELEASED

Protestors holding signs

On September 12, USCRI released its comprehensive report following the two-year anniversary of the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan. The report, titled “After Our Allies Were Welcomed: Chronicling the Afghan Resettlement Response Since 2021,” was launched as part of a hybrid event at InterAction’s Washington, D.C. office. USCRI staff Tanisha Elizaire, Sara Lowry, Daniel Salazar, and Zeze Rwasama, moderated by AnnaMarie Bena, discussed the successes and challenges of the Afghan resettlement response.

Click here to read more and to watch a recording of the event.

HER DREAMS TO ACHIEVE: ENSURING PROTECTION & EDUCATION FOR REFUGEE GIRLS

Photo © USCRI, 2023. Inside a boarding school for girls in Kakuma.

In August and September 2023, USCRI Policy Analyst Victoria Walker traveled to Kenya to visit both Dadaab and Kakuma refugee camps with an aim to better understand the experiences of refugee children in the camps and to examine access to education and child protection services within the camps. In this week’s Policy & Advocacy report, she presents some of the key findings from her visits as they relate to the unique challenges faced by refugee girls.

Click here to read the report.

“Lawyers, engineers, presidents, teachers, doctors, pilots, journalists, the list of dreams continued. As every girl presented her reasoning behind these choices, a pattern became clear: each was connected to an overarching desire to strengthen and improve their communities, countries, and our global collective.”

STAFF & VOLUNTEERS HELP WITH VERMONT FLOOD RELIEF EFFORTS

USCRI volunteers gather to help with flood clean-up

On July 24, USCRI Vermont staff, case aides, and volunteers traveled to the Montpelier and Barre communities to help with clean-up in flood-ravaged neighborhoods. The team spent the day working with local residents and business owners, offering whatever assistance was needed and were joined by others who stopped by to help. The scale of the damage and the impact of the floods were beyond words after the flood waters had receded.

Click here to read more and to watch a video from the volunteers.

USCRI ERIE WELCOMES NEW STAFF

Last month, USCRI Erie welcomed several new staff members who bring with them cultural and language supports that reflect the current refugee populations.

Abdullah arrived in Erie in July 2022 with his wife, infant daughter, and mother after being evacuated from Afghanistan and spending eight months in a temporary shelter in Abu Dhabi. He served as an interpreter for the U.S. military in Afghanistan and speaks Dari, Pashto, Hindi, Farsi, and Urdu. Abdullah now works in the Resettlement and Placement program, focusing on the initial supports for refugees, such as housing, cultural orientation, English classes, and medical screenings. “I feel like one of the luckiest people on Earth to be here … it’s a good feeling to help people who are new to the States,” he says.

Click here to read more about more new staff and the much-needed skills they bring to USCRI Erie.

We ask you to help us support our new community members with a donation. Your support makes it possible for us to provide essential services such as transportation, emergency housing, food, and medical assistance.

Together, we can make a difference.

USCRI, founded in 1911, is a non-governmental, not-for-profit international organization committed to working on behalf of refugees and immigrants and their transition to a dignified life.