This one * is from Tucson, AZ yesterday. This guy was an interpreter and definitely has a tough story to tell.
But, it’s the same old story regarding resettlement. No jobs, not enough financial support, unhappy refugee, whinny non-profit resettlement agencies looking for more public money etc., etc. The very well-off International Rescue Committee is involved here too. They were one of the chief lobbying organizations demanding we bring more Iraqis to the US.
What do you want to guess the salary is of the New York City-based Vice President? It’s likely approaching $200,000. Heck the President of this non-profit is getting close to $400,000. (I’ve written about this so many times, I’m not looking up the link). Maybe these guys could share some of their wealth with the less fortunate they are placing in the public’s care. Or, maybe Mr. Carey has a guest room for Taha and his family?
The assumption is that people will find work and start becoming self-sufficient within 90 days of arrival, said Bob Carey, vice president for resettlement and migration policy with the International Rescue Committee in New York City.
“The resources of the programs, either public or private, have not kept pace with the needs of the people who are coming in,” Carey said. “What we’ve been doing is urging the State Department to review how they fund and run these programs.”
Some of the people have chronic illnesses or ailments, he said, and services are minimal. Many have to wait a long time for disability benefits to kick in, he said.
“They come over to the U.S. and not only have they gone through this trauma and hardship, they also have fairly high expectations about what will be provided to them, and it’s understandable they would,” Carey said. “They’ve been injured because of U.S. affiliations.”
The agencies and people providing these services are overwhelmed, he said, adding that the faltering economy has made it that much more difficult for people like Taha.
The solution for all these problems is never—maybe we should bring fewer refugees.
Just now I was looking through our archives for the Tucson wise-beyond-his-years Iraqi boy, and came across a post Judy did A YEAR AGO about unhappy Iraqis in Tucson. Can’t you resettlement agencies in Tucson get it together to take care of these people? Or, tell the State Department to send them somewhere else?
Here is what that very wise boy said in Tucson just two months ago. If he gets it, why can’t the State Department and the volags?
It is better to have 10 Iraqi refugees who are satisfied with their lives than having 100 angry ones with no life at all.
See our Iraqi refugee category for everything you ever wanted to know on the subject. Soon we may need to make a subcategory for all the posts on unhappy Iraqis in the US.
* If the link doesn’t open because they want you to register try going to the link for the comments here and then go back to the story. Sorry about that. The article is in the Arizona Daily Star yesterday.