You could take a story like this one and just change the location and names and place it in at least 20 newspapers in America. Once again, the same tired old story. Iraqis who had helped our military come to the US with high expectations (someone is lying to them somewhere along the way), they can’t find work and then the refugee resettlement industry folks say ‘too bad’ our hands are tied.
The story begins with the terrible circumstances that brought the adult Hassan family to America (the reporters always start out with the tragedy). Then we hear how they have arrived in America only to find they have no work and the government and their resettlement agency will be soon cutting them off, implying they could be set out on the street in just a few months.
They moved. [to America]
Now the family is desperate, said Ali Hasan, 30, one of five adult children who arrived in Everett with their mother this year.
“We can’t find jobs,” he said. “We’ve looked everywhere.”
Hasan was an English teacher in Baghdad. His brother and sisters also speak English. They thought they’d have an easier time than most who come to the U.S., but the global economic crisis has pushed them out of the hiring pool at places that once hired refugees.
Jobs cleaning buildings, stocking grocery store shelves and working in factory lines have either disappeared or been snatched up by local people who have been laid off.
The Hasan family must find work by October. That’s when their refugee cash assistance, just $359 per month per single adult, runs out. Families with children can apply for help through the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program, but single adults don’t have any other options.
“My heart goes out to them, but we’re tied by federal laws,” said Tom Medina, director of Washington state’s refugee resettlement program. “This economy is so tight that they’re competing with mainstream Americans for jobs.”
The economy has been tight for some time now, yet the US State Department and the volags (government contractors) are making no move to turn the spigot off or warn the refugees. Curious isn’t it. And, by the way, there is no law that says these agencies can’t find PRIVATE money to help the refugees beyond that magic date when they tell refugees they will be on the street.
Refugees are flooding into Washington State from everywhere.
The Hasans came to the U.S. as part of a federal program to resettle 12,000 Iraqis whose lives are at risk as long as they stay in the Middle East. It’s not clear how many Iraqi refugees will be resettled in Washington, but the state may be a prime destination because a large Iraqi community already exists here. Hundreds of Iraqis live in northeast Everett, many of whom came to the U.S. about 15 years ago after they protested against Saddam Hussein following Operation Desert Storm.
Nearly 100 Iraqis have arrived in Washington since the 2009 fiscal year began in October, Medina said. The state is likely to receive about 100 more before the end of the year. About 220 Iraqis arrived in 2008, he said.
The state is also receiving refugees from Bhutan, Burma, Ukraine, east Africa and other regions.
The International Rescue Committee (IRC) says, it’s not our fault that the refugees expectations are too high.
“Some have expectations that are pretty high,” said Bob Johnson, director of the International Rescue Committee’s Seattle office.
And, it’s not our fault, those pesky people who volunteer their time to help refugees are discouraging them from taking jobs like cleaning pet cages:
Local churches and other groups often volunteer to help “sponsor” refugees, offering furniture and other supplies and help getting accustomed to everyday life. Sponsors can complicate a job search if they think a refugee is entitled to a better job than is available.
The well-intentioned volunteer doesn’t know the agency doesn’t get paid, or doesn’t get a good rating, if they don’t get that refugee employed at something—-anything!—-as fast as possible.
I have an idea! Since we just learned that the Leftwing big moneybags at the Tides Foundation (George Soros et al) gave the IRC $3.5 million a year ago, why not go to them again and ask for more money FOR REFUGEES, not for staff or offices or lobbying for Amnesty. I know for a fact that Soros was pushing for the Iraqis to come here because, among other projects, he sits on the ‘International Crisis Group’ board that advocated for Iraqi resettlement. Also, another Soros pet project, the Center for American Progress says they want to airlift 100,000 Iraqis here this year. Well how about you rich hypocrits pay for them! You have more money then the US government has at this point.
Endnote: I wrote about potential problems with Iraqi refugees in Everett back in 2007, here. At that time, Washington State was the 4th largest refugee-receiving state in the nation, I didn’t check if that is still the case.