He is guessing on the numbers and basing it on the fact that Florida is one of the top states receiving mostly Muslim Syrians so far. We listed the Top Ten states here. And, we listed all the cities receiving Syrians (so far) here.
This is from WLRN (Miami) (I sure hope there are a lot of mental health dollars available in Florida!):
According to the State Department, the six states that have housed the most Syrian refugees so far are Texas, California, Michigan, Illinois, Arizona and Florida.
Dr. Doured Daghistani, a pediatric oncologist and board member of the Syrian American Council of South Florida, says the culture shock endured by Syrian refugees arriving here is unlike any other immigrant experience.
“They’re coming with a big psycho-social burden on them,” said Daghistani.
[….]
Last month, President Obama said his administration is preparing to accept 10,000 Syrian refugees in the coming budget year. Daghistani said he expects 10-20% of the refugees to relocate to Florida and at least 10% to South Florida.
Recent polls show a majority of Americans are opposed to Obama’s plan, with most believing it poses a threat to national security.
[….]
“I think bringing the Syrian refugees here will help the humanitarian issues and will beef up the diversity of South Florida,” Daghistani said.
Syrian American Council of South Florida facebook page is here.
What you can do!
I urge all of you in Florida to visit my post yesterday and contact your state’s resettlement agencies. You will be asking for a schedule of upcoming “quarterly consultations” and the “FY2016 Abstract” for your city. Report to me what you find out!
Meeting tomorrow in Orlando
Although not Southern Florida, a reader yesterday told me about a meeting TOMORROW in Orlando. If you are in the area please attend!
Orlando Area Refugee Task Force Meeting
Event Type:
Public Meeting
Date/Time:
Wednesday, October 14, 2015 – 10:00 to 12:00
Location:
Florida Department of Transportation
133 S. Semoran Blvd
Orlando Florida 32807
United States
The purpose of this meeting is to increase awareness of the refugee populations, share best practices, spot trends in refugee populations, build collaborations between agencies, help create good communication among service providers, get informed about upcoming community events, and discuss refugee program service needs and possible solutions to meeting those needs.
I’ve been told that the Florida Dept of Children and Families has other PUBLIC meetings on refugees as well, so Floridians need to find out how to be notified of upcoming opportunities around the state.