Tuesday, March 15
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NOORANI'S NOTES

 

The Biden administration is weighing its options to expedite the
resettlement of some Ukrainian refugees with family connections to the
U.S., reports Priscilla Alvarez of CNN
. 

Although the pathways for Ukrainians to enter the U.S. are limited and
visa backlogs continue to grow, the U.S. is working with the European
Union and other allies to aid vulnerable and displaced people around the
world. 

So far, advocates are calling on Biden to keep up with the demand by
issuing tourist visas and extending humanitarian parole. 

Our friend Krish O'Mara Vignarajah of Lutheran Immigration and Refugee
Service told NBC's

Katy Tur that it's "critical the U.S. takes a more direct role" in
aiding Ukrainian refugees.  

For The New Yorker
,
Rafał Milach's photography highlights the harrowing journeys of
Ukrainians fleeing the country through various means - despite being
unclear about their destination or future.  

And ICYMI, Dianne Solis of The Dallas Morning News

profiles Ukrainian-born artist Vladimir Grygorenko - known for his
iconic murals - who is now "asking for prayer and understanding of
the geopolitics between Russia, Ukraine and the United States." 

By the way, today is publication day for Crossing Borders
! (Whoa if true.) Yesterday
one of my favorite authors and journalists, Mindy Belz,

was the first to tweet a photo of a copy that made it out into the wild.
Thank you for the kind words, Mindy.  

For your calendar: I'm hosting an in-person Crossing Borders event in
D.C. at Politics & Prose

this weekend with Amanda Ripley, plus online events with Zócalo Public
Square
,
NationSwell, and Cornell University. 

Welcome to Tuesday'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] .
And if you know others who'd like to receive the Notes, please spread
the word. They can subscribe here.
 

ASYLUM CASES - Ukrainians and Russians were asking for asylum in the
U.S. long before the invasion of Ukraine, report Miriam Jordan and
Eileen Sullivan of The New York Times
.
"Politically, the times in Russia are worse than during Stalin; people
are living in terror," said Anaida Zadykyan, an immigration lawyer in
Los Angeles who has been guiding Russians with asylum claims.
"Economically, there is no money. People feel they can't survive."
Meanwhile, an estimated 1,000 Ukrainian refugees have been apprehended
at the southern border this year, compared to just 676 last year. The
good news: Most people
from Russia and Ukraine are winning their asylum cases. For more on how
Russians are finding ways to claim asylum on U.S. soil despite
limitations, see Elliot Spagat and Eugene Garcia's piece for the
Associated Press
. 

**THE PATEL FAMILY** - A more in-depth look at a brutal story we
shared when it was first published by NBC News
:
The Patels, a family of four from India seeking better opportunities in
the U.S., died in an "unforgiving blizzard" on the U.S.-Canada
border, Miriam Jordan writes for The New York Times
.
Jordan walks us through the cross-border search that ensued after
Jagdish Patel, 39, his wife Vaishali, 37, daughter Vihangi, 11, and son
Dharmik, 3, went missing in subzero weather conditions. In
commemoration, a livestreamed farewell was held for those in their home
village. No family should have to go through these lengths to seek
asylum - or die trying. We need a more compassionate and functioning
asylum system so that this never happens again.  

DEEP ROOTS - Despite the prospect of danger, many Mexican families in
the U.S. are making an effort to visit their homeland and keep
traditions alive, reports Alfredo Corchado of The Dallas Morning News
.
These days, planning trips back home mean navigating certain streets and
avoiding others, while deciding which family to visit or not, based on
safety concerns. "The love for Mexico is so huge that we literally risk
our lives to come back, as much as we can, whenever we can," said North
Texas resident Ruben Ramirez. "Visiting Mexico is an overwhelming
feeling and you don't feel complete until you go back..." added
Socorro Perales, a community organizer in Dallas. "Those who say they
won't come back to Mexico are not being honest with themselves because
even though there are risks, there is also a deep longing." 

HOME HEALTH WORKERS - We need more immigrants to help fill the home
health care workforce gap, writes Andrew Donlan for Home Health Care
News
.
One solution could be restarting a program discontinued in 2009, which
deems home health aides as a qualified occupation so that foreign-born
employees can apply for work visas. Although Congress discontinued the
visa program, "[t]he underutilization of it wasn't reflective of the
need, it was just reflective of people not knowing about it," said
Kristie De Peña of the Niskanen Center. If we don't plan to address
these fast-growing shortages, "we are not going to have the immigrant
labor that's necessary to fill all of these needs," she added. See the
Forum's paper

for more on this topic. 

AFGHAN BACKLOGS - After threats from the Taliban, Fazlur Rahim
Muzaffary, a former U.N. human rights specialist fled Afghanistan for
the U.S. in 2016. He has now been waiting more than five years for a
decision on his asylum case, reports Dianne Solis of The Dallas Morning
News
.
Despite proving that he was a target of potential violence, earning two
university degrees, and making a life for himself with his family, "I am
in limbo," Muzaffary said. According to USCIS data, by the end of
December 2021, the backlog for asylum-related protections had doubled to
more than 432,000 pending applications.  

On the local front: 

* A network of Bowling Green, Kentucky, organizations recently hosted a
welcome event for 350 Afghan refugees who have resettled in the area.
(Allie Hennard, WBKO
) 

* As part of Airbnb's Open Homes project, Wendy and Jeff Ovall of
Vancouver, Washington, sponsored the Azizpour family with support from
their church, Columbia Presbyterian. (Scott Hewitt, The Columbian
) 

* Together, Lutheran Services in Iowa and the Mary J. Treglia Community
House have supported several Afghan families as they resettle in the
Sioux City area, a.k.a. the "best place of America." (Dolly Butz, Sioux
City Journal
) 

Thanks for reading, 

Ali 

 

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