We have reported on many occasions that West Virginia has pretty much dodged a bullet when it comes to the federal government resettling third worlders in the state, but all of that is changing as new efforts are underway to supply more industries there with cheap labor—in a state that has been struggling for years! [***Update*** or is it pressure from the Catholic Church, see here—ed]
The controversy began last spring when Episcopal Migration Ministries (one of 9 federal refugee contractors) went public with its plan to bring Middle Eastern refugees—Syrians in particular—to Charleston which had only gotten a few Iraqis and Iranians in the last ten years.
BTW, 176 refugees in total were placed (mostly by Catholic Charities) in West Virginia in the last decade. Charleston got 13 Iraqis and 9 Iranians before last year’s five Syrians.
We reported on the plan by EMM here. Then again here and here in September. And, more recently published the testimony of citizen activist Brenda Arthur to Senator Jeff Sessions Subcommittee on Immigration and the National Interest, here.
Arthur has now launched a facebook page—ACT Charleston-Secure West Virginia. Click here to join and keep up with the news.
Earlier in the summer when Arthur was just learning about the RAP (Refugee Admissions Program), after reading about it in an article in the Charleston Daily Mail, she penned a letter to the editor. Arthur reports the following:
This (below) is the letter I tried to get Kelly Merritt – Charleston Daily Mail Opinion Page Editor – to publish in late July 2016. He wanted me to “soften” it, as he said it was too “inflammatory”. I would not — therefore, he would not publish it.
This is the “inflammatory” letter, what do you think?
REFUGEE RESETTLEMENT FOR CHARLESTON?
Brenda Arthur
On May 26, 2016, the Charleston Gazette-Mail published an article by staff writer Erin Beck. She painted a glowing face on the issue of Charleston being targeted by Episcopal Migration Ministries as a “resettlement community.” I’m compelled to fill in gaps in her narrative with what Paul Harvey called ‘the rest of the story’.
The refugees being brought to the United States are 98% Muslim. Only a small number are Christians. In reality, the Christians are treated much worse in the refugee camps. Many Christians are afraid to go to the refugee camps because of mistreatment by the overwhelming numbers of Muslims.
Although people being brought here as refugees come from all over the world — many of those coming now are picked by the United Nations High Commissioner For Refugees from the refugee camps in Syria, Turkey, and Jordan. The UN is a corrupt organization that hates America and Israel. How can we trust any refugees they pick for us?
Beck’s article never mentioned that ISIS has sworn to infiltrate the ‘refugees’:
“ISIS has said in their own words that they want to exploit it to infiltrate the West. Again, it is not a threat I am making up, it’s a threat their own officials have warned us about.” (11/18/15)–House Homeland Security Chairman Michael McCaul.
Beck neglected to report that these refugees can’t be vetted, an alarming fact that ISIS knows even if Erin Beck doesn’t.
James B. Comey, Director, Federal Bureau of Investigation, U.S. Department of Justice: “There is risk associated with bringing anybody in from the outside, but especially from a conflict zone like [Syria]… My concern there [about bringing Syrian refugees into the United States] is that there are certain gaps I don’t want to talk about publicly in the data available to us.” (10/8/15)
Supporters of this resettlement scheme will tell you that the refugees are vetted by our State Department and Homeland Security. REALLY? Is this the same State Department that “vetted” the wife of the San Bernardino terrorist, and gave refugee status to the Tsarnaev brothers a.k.a. the Boston bombers? Perhaps Erin Beck has a copy of the State Department memo warning Charleston – and other host cities across America – that some refugees are afflicted with drug resistant strains of TB.
Are we to believe highly informed intelligence experts — or groups like the Episcopal Migration Ministries (one of 9 major Federal Contractors paid mostly with our tax dollars) who are paid “by the head” to bring these people to the United States. Thanks to a reserved place at the public trough, these Federal Contractors get hundreds of millions of dollars in government grants.
Ask yourself these questions:
Why do groups like Episcopal Migration Ministries (a 501(c) 3 charity) *(and the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops operating in West Virginia as Catholic Charities of West Virginia) get hundreds of millions of our tax dollars to do their work ?
Why do they operate “below the radar” away from public scrutiny?
Why aren’t they presenting our elected representatives with the R & P Abstract (Reception & Placement) which details the plan for the town they are invading?
Before you vilify me as a bigot, xenophobe, racist, or hater, answer these questions:
Why is it incumbent on us to absorb so many impoverished third world peoples who reject our language, our culture, or our values?
Why spend millions on them when thousands of my fellow West Virginians are facing hard times due to the Federal assault on our coal industry?
Why is money given to foreign nationals when our veterans cannot get quality medical care?
Why not resettle them in other Muslim countries like Saudi Arabia where there is plenty of space and oil money to boot?
Why should our country which is almost 20 Trillion dollars in debt give refugees Supplemental Security Income (SSI), Food Stamps, Medicaid, Social Security Disability Insurance, Public Housing, Child Care & Development, Job Opportunities for Low Income Individuals (JOLI), Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP), and other government benefits?
We have our own problems. Could any group that wants to bring impoverished third world peoples here that add a further financial burden to our citizens and have the potential of risking our security have the interest of our community and state in mind?
*Added: 10-23-16
More questions from me:
Where is the West Virginia Congressional Delegation? Where is Senator Shelley Moore Capito? Where is Rep. Alex Mooney? Are they shilling for industries in West Virginia clamoring for cheap immigrant labor in a state that has seen unemployment go up as the coal industry is being killed by Obama? Their silence is telling!
Endnote: While doing my research on Iraqis here yesterday, I noticed that the tiny town of Washington, WV on the Ohio border is getting Iraqis, only a small number so far, but I wonder why? Spillover from Ohio?