This program saved my life — but thousands of Afghans like me still need help.
Hello, John,
I haven't been able to sleep thinking of all the people suffering and dying in my home country.
My name is Nargis. I work in marketing here at the IRC, but I'm reaching out to you today as an Afghan-U.S. citizen — and a former refugee — living in the United States.
You may have read about Afghanistan in the news lately, and I wanted to reach out and update you — an IRC supporter — on one important, and deeply personal, part of the crisis and the IRC’s response. In 2009, the United States created the Afghan Special Immigrant Visa (SIV) program to protect Afghan allies who risked their lives helping U.S. troops. The IRC plays a critical role in helping SIV recipients resettle and rebuild their lives here in the U.S.
In my hometown, Kabul, I worked as an interpreter for the U.S. Army. It was an incredibly dangerous job — but I knew it would be worth it if I could give my son Rehan (he's in the photo with me, below) a chance at a better life.
That chance came for us in 2013. I was able to secure a Special Immigrant Visa, and Rehan and I were resettled in New York. That's how I first experienced the incredible work of the IRC.
I still smile when I think about being greeted by our IRC caseworker and finding our new apartment filled with all the necessities of home. The IRC also helped with everyday things like getting a subway card, opening a bank account, helping me find a job, and helping to get Rehan enrolled in kindergarten.
The IRC and the SIV program gave me the opportunity to escape the violence and uncertainty of war.
As violence intensifies across large areas of Afghanistan, civilians are at risk of being caught up in fighting between warring parties. Civilian casualties reached record levels in the first half of 2021. Unless steps are taken to de-escalate the violence, Afghanistan will see its highest ever number of such casualties in a single year — with the majority being women and children.
Eighteen million people in Afghanistan are in dire need of humanitarian assistance — a situation that is only worsening as the conflict intensifies. Schools are closed, food shortages abound, and people are turning to desperate measures such as child labor and early marriage for girls. The humanitarian response is critical.
P.S. The IRC has been working in Afghanistan since 1988. With over 1,700 staff and volunteers, we reach more than a million Afghans each year with education, protection, water and sanitation, emergency response, and economic recovery services.
Our teams are also helping to welcome Afghan SIV applicants arriving in Virginia — providing medical care and other services as they prepare for resettlement by a sponsoring agency. And we assist newly arrived Afghans and other refugees and asylum seekers to the U.S. through our own network of more than 20 offices across the U.S.
