This is really a nothingburger story at a college newspaper, but I was drawn by the headline, and, since I hadn’t mentioned Colorado much lately, am posting it.
Reporter Ramah Aleryan‘s provocative title at The Catalyst is:
Trump’s Secretive Changes to the Process of Reviewing Refugees
The story then goes on to explain how the vetting process is being tightened and that the local Lutheran contractor’s office is shrinking. It is the same sob story we are hearing from sea to shining sea.
And, I continue to contend that the whole Ponzi-scheme system of paying ‘religious’ charities like the Lutherans with federal dollars to place refugees on a per head basis is crashing and a major part of the blame (for staff reductions and refugees left in the lurch) rests with the agencies like this one in Colorado (a subcontractor of the ‘mothership’—Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Services in turmoil at the moment) that never raised enough private money to tide them over in downturn times like this.
LOL! A good friend recently coined the phrase: “Live by the government, die by the government.”
So here is some of what reporter Aleryan says about Colorado Springs.
By the way, no mention anywhere about how the refugees were pouring in to Colorado to supply meatpackers with cheap labor (LIRS even has a contract with Brazilian-owned slaughterhouse—JBS—headquartered in Greeley!).
President Trump’s executive order to ban refugees from Iran, Iraq, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, and Yemen from coming into the United States, known as “The Muslim Ban,” is what we often talk about and see on news regarding any refugee status or immigration policy. However, is the Muslim Ban what really affects the arrival of refugees in American cities such as Colorado Springs?
Laura Liibbe is the community programs coordinator at Lutheran Family Services, Colorado’s local organization that is responsible for refugee settlement, among other affairs. Liibbe studied international development and teaches English as a second language, which was what inspired her to get involved with the organization. Her work primarily entails connecting refugees to the resources they need in Colorado Springs. [Connecting to resources=signing them up for welfare—ed] She has been working with LFS for six years.
[….]
When the refugee ban was finally lifted, people believed that refugees could again enter the U.S.. However, Trump had already implemented secretive policies that were not at the forefront of the news, so refugees were still not granted access to the country.
The security processes that Trump altered made it impossible for some cases to be processed. The security screening process usually entails refugees providing medical documents, background checking, verification of their refugee status, and their employment history for 10 years. That process is already difficult for some refugees to fulfill, especially if they fled their country and do not have access to their official documents. This process was made more difficult by mandating a 15 or 20 year verification of employment and other documents.
Trump also took resources from refugee reviewing processes that were reallocated to U.S. asylum cases. Liibbe emphasized that this move was not necessarily bad, but she criticizes the shift of resources instead of investing in new and increased resources. The refugee reviewing process is now significantly slower due to the loss of financial support and expertise. Each year, the President chooses a number of refugees to accept. This year, Trump’s administration decided on 45,000, but due to the slowed nature of the process, only 18,000 are expected to be approved and able to enter this year.
[….]
Liibbe emphasized that the city of Colorado Springs has the resources, the capacity, and the capabilities to receive refugees. In the past, they have settled 150 refugees a year with ease. Now, Liibbe insists that we will see a major decrease in that number. This decrease will deeply affect the LFS partnerships because their government funding is dependent on how many refugees they settle.
Can you say Ponzi-scheme! For regular readers this per refugee head payment business is old news, but believe me, ten years ago when I began writing about the program, no media ever mentioned that critical fact!
Come on Congress, time to get off your butts and either dump or reform the Refugee Act of 1980!
Endnote to Ms. Aleryan: You might be interested in writing about the contracts LIRS has with meatpackers especially since this agency—Lutheran Family Services, Rocky Mountains—helped secure the contracts. Humanitarianism is not the primary driving force behind the UN/US Refugee Admissions Program! Big business and the Chamber of Commerce is! (Dems get voters of course!)
