Thursday, March 3
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NOORANI'S NOTES

 

The National Immigration Forum is part of a new coalition

of about 30 diverse organizations that launched yesterday - including
business, faith, education, national security, and advocacy groups -
to push for immigration reforms this year.  

The Alliance for a New Immigration Consensus (ANIC),
including the U.S. Chamber of Commerce

and the Evangelical Immigration Table
,
Americans for Prosperity and others, sent a letter to Congress
,
urging lawmakers to pass "solutions on issues with broad public support,
such as offering permanent protection for so-called Dreamers, Temporary
Protected Status (TPS) recipients and agricultural workers, as well as
improved border security," as Marisa Schultz of Fox News

reports. Speaking with CBS News
'
Elaine Quijano last night, I linked the Alliance's important work to
broad public support we found in our new poll
.
 

Recipients of Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals "should be having
fun living out their childhood, enjoying trips to the amusement park,"
said Bernardo Castro, a 30-year-old DACA recipient himself, in the
Alliance's press conference

yesterday. "But the political bickering has made their life a cruel
roller coaster." 

Welcome to Thursday's edition of Noorani's Notes. If you have
a story to share from your own community, please send it to me at
[email protected] . 

**UKRAINE** - Today marks one week since Russia's invasion of
Ukraine. A team at the Associated Press

reports that more than 1 million refugees have fled Ukraine, "the
swiftest refugee exodus this century," per the United Nations.
Businesses and regular citizens in Europe are demonstrating inspiring
welcome: Airbnb has offered to temporarily house up to 100,000 Ukrainian
refugees fleeing to other European countries, reports Suzanne Rowan
Kelleher of Forbes
.
Uber is now offering free unlimited rides
between the
Ukraine-Poland border and two other Polish cities, reports Jessica
Bursztynsky of CNBC
.
In Berlin, video from Reuters

shows thousands of residents at the central train station to welcome and
offer refuge to arriving Ukrainians. (Wow.) Meanwhile, also in Forbes
,
Stuart Anderson, executive director of the National Foundation for
American Policy, explains how Ukrainian and Russian immigrants are
helping Americans understand the war, and "what U.S. policy should be
now and in the future."  

**BORDER NEWS** - Newly built parts of the southern border wall have
been breached by smugglers 3,272 times over the past three years, per
unpublished U.S. Customs and Border Protection data, reports Nick Miroff
of The Washington Post

- with repairs costing $2.6 million from 2019 to 2021. "While the
agency has acknowledged that smugglers are able to hack through the new
barriers built by the Trump administration, the maintenance records show
damage has been more widespread than previously known, pointing to the
structure's limitations as an impediment to illegal crossings," writes
Miroff. I write about the need for better border narratives and policies
that balance both national security and compassion in a new essay for
Zócalo Public Square
.
 

SUD

**AN, SOUTH SUDAN TPS** - On Wednesday, the Department of Homeland
Security (DHS) designated Sudan and redesignated South Sudan for
Temporary Protected Status for 18 months, per Homeland Security Today
.
Applicants must already be in the U.S., meet eligibility requirements
and pass security and background checks. "Sudan is currently
experiencing political instability and unrest, and armed conflict in
South Sudan has displaced millions of residents," said DHS
Secretary Alejandro N. Mayorkas.  

**RAOUFIS SIBLINGS** - Two Afghan siblings are among the refugees
beginning to rebuild their lives in Bradenton, Florida, thanks to robust
community support, reports James A. Jones Jr. of the Bradenton Herald
. Noman was
a translator for the U.S. and our allies, while Venus worked for the
Afghan Ministry of Justice. "Noman is a problem solver and so
resourceful. Venus is warm and wonderful," said Denise Chandler,
director of Learning and People Development for Westminster Communities
of Florida, which now employs both siblings. "They have added so much
to our community." Meanwhile, a deputy with the Sarasota Sheriff's
Office brought 33 members of his family out of Afghanistan after the
Taliban takeover last year. The deputy himself is a former interpreter
who worked with U.S. forces including the sheriff's cousin. "All the
things he has done and what has happened. It is like a movie," Sheriff
Kurt A. Hoffman said. 

Among other local welcome: 

* Cedar Rapids' Catherine McAuley Center is looking for English tutors
to assist 250 resettled Afghans. As a tutor, "I get the chance to learn
a little bit about their country and their language as well as trying to
understand empathy, and that helps them," said Brenda Meeker, the
Training and Development Specialist for Raining Rose, a partner. (Brian
Tabick, KCRG
) 

* Launched by U.S. Marine reservist Ryan Alvis, the Arlington Neighbors
Welcoming Afghans (ANWA) Facebook group "has become the virtual
gathering point for coordinating supplies, volunteers and team leads"
for new Afghan arrivals. (Eliza Tebo, Arlington Magazine
)  

* In collaboration with Lutheran Family Services, City of Albuquerque
officials have launched a new campaign to help Afghan refugees secure
affordable housing in New Mexico. (Colton Shone, KOB 4
) 

* Jason Lief, a mobilizer for the Forum and a Northwestern College
professor, is working with Mary J. Treglia Community House to help with
Afghan resettlement in Sioux City. (Piet Westerbeek, Daily Grind
/Sioux County
Radio) 

'THEY ARE US' - As global displacement continues, a coalition of
neighbors, including faith-based groups and co-workers, are coming
together to support refugees, writes Mary Hall of NewsNation Now
.
Known as "community sponsorship," the U.S. government

and a network of volunteers from nonprofit organization(s) are assisting
refugees with housing, language, culture and school enrollment, among
other services, explains Hall. "When (volunteers) see them, they don't
see refugees or a scary word - they don't see terrorists," said
Kathie O'Callaghan, the founder of Hearts & Homes for Refugees in New
York. "They see a mother and a father and children and babies trying to
make a life. They don't recognize them as different. Because after
all, they are us."  

Thanks for reading, 

Ali 

 

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