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AFGHAN SUPPORT — Organizations throughout the U.S. are "rallying evangelical support for incoming Afghan refugees, as Christians across the ideological spectrum have united in prayer, fundraising, and programming to help," Stefani McDade reports for Christianity Today. In just over a week, the Hope Clinic in Cleveland raised more than $100,000 to cover humanitarian parole application fees for Afghan evacuees, while World Relief Sacramento has enlisted Afghan counselors to address refugees’ mental health needs — and these are just two examples. "We have a biblical calling to welcome the stranger — and there are no qualifications or caveats on that," said World Relief Sacramento director Kerry Ham. "The refugee program is something I believe the United States can be very proud of the 40-plus year history of doing just that — regardless of ethnicity, regardless of faith." A side note that on Monday the Evangelical Immigration Table sent a letter to Congress asking that Afghans on humanitarian parole receive the same government support as resettled refugees. Meanwhile, local stories of welcome continue:
HAITIAN MIGRANTS — The first group of Haitian migrants deported from a makeshift camp in Del Rio, Texas, "landed in their home country Sunday amid sweltering heat, anger and confusion, as Haitian officials beseeched the United States to stop the flights because the country is in crisis and cannot handle thousands of homeless deportees," Harold Isaac and Catherine Porter report for The New York Times. In a follow-up story, Porter spoke to Nicodeme Vyles, who was among the first to be deported and says he was not given the opportunity to speak with an immigration agent. "I thought the United States was a big country, with laws. They treated us terribly," said Vyles, who has not lived in Haiti in years. "I don’t know this country anymore." Meanwhile, the White House has condemned U.S. border agents’ use of a "whip-like cord" to threaten Haitian migrants along the Texas border, Daina Beth Solomon reports for Reuters. PLAN B — Democrats "are ready to pitch a Plan B" to Senate Parliamentarian Elizabeth MacDonough after she ruled against their proposed inclusion of immigration provisions in the budget reconciliation package, report Rafael Bernal and Rebecca Beitsch of The Hill. Among the options on the table: "a congressional mandate for the executive to change the registry date for certain undocumented immigrants and beneficiaries of humanitarian parole programs, essentially implementing a statute of limitations for past unauthorized entries." The story cites a FWD.us report that finds changing the registry date to 2010 would allow about 6.7 million people who arrived before that date to be eligible for legal permanent residency. DACA LIMBO — Many first-time applicants for Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) are deferring their college and career plans as they await a federal appeal of the court ruling declaring the program unlawful, Laura Rodríguez Presa reports for the Chicago Tribune. "It feels like everyone is progressing and my life is at a halt, living under the terms of the government," said Angela Sustaita, 18. "While I see all my friends going to college or getting new jobs, I feel useless just sitting at home." While the latest court ruling bars new DACA applications only, "it has also affected the backlog of renewal cases that had been delayed by the COVID-19 pandemic, leaving many who were previously approved for DACA without work permits," Presa explains. Thanks for reading, |
