John

Rep. Greg Casar, Sen. Dick Durbin, and Rep. Pramila Jayapal are currently circulating a letter through both houses of Congress, urging President Biden to establish a means for refugees from Palestine who have family in the United States to come to the U.S. and stay for their safety.

Specifically, the letter calls for establishing a Priority-2 (P-2) designation under the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program (USRAP) for Palestinians in Gaza with family in the U.S..

Currently, Palestinians are very rarely granted U.S. refugee status. In 2023, of over 60,000 refugees who resettled in the United States, fewer than 60 (less than 1 in 1,000) who were admitted were Palestinians.

Making P-2 status available could save the lives of thousands of Palestinian lives, reuniting them with their families, and enabling them to improve their lives dramatically. Meanwhile the hope is still to continue to work toward a permanent ceasefire.

Send a direct message to your Senators and House Representative today, urging them to sign onto the letter to President Biden to grant P-2 status for Palestinian refugees with family in the United States. You can either sign a pre-written letter, or modify it to make it more personal.

There are a number of hurdles that must be overcome in order to make the resettling of Palestinian refugees in the United States a reality. First, they must be able to get out of Gaza in the first place. Then they must show they are being politically persecuted, and Biden’s support for the Netanyahu government could make this difficult to demonstrate.

Passing through background checks and screenings could take months or even years. The Humanitarian Parole program is one program that can expedite the process, created by the Biden administration for Afghans who were evacuated from Kabul after the fall of the Taliban.

Humanitarian Parole has also been used for refugees from the war in Ukraine and people from Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua, and Venezuela, but there is no such process currently in place for Palestinians, and it does not automatically lead to asylum status.

Due to these limitations in Humanitarian Parole, the P-2 designation through the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program would be a more desirable way for Palestinians to create the potential for a more permanent stay in the United States.

Help save lives! Ask your members of Congress to urge the President to grant P-2 status and admit Palestinian refugees to be reunited with families in the United States now!

Thank you for working toward the worthy goal of peace in Palestine and the reunification of families.

- DFA AF Team