In an article, one of MANY I am seeing, refugee contractors are complaining that they can’t find enough housing for the Afghan evacuees most states, including New Hampshire, are welcoming.
Ten days ago, I reported on the lack of affordable housing for Biden’s newest wave of ‘new Americans,’ see here:
I found this particular story at the Concord Monitor interesting, and useful for readers, because it demonstrates the web of resettlement agencies and sub-agencies that may have you confused.
Agency struggles to find housing for Afghan evacuees coming to New Hampshire
The agency responsible for coordinating the arrival of Afghan evacuees to New Hampshire is struggling to find places for them to live just as they are set to arrive in the Concord area.
Memory lane! Ascentria (formerly Lutheran Social Services of New England) made news here at RRW when its then new President and CEO, Angela Bovill stated publicly that refugee resettlement was a “business”—a business that needed federal cash to survive. We knew that, but it was a big deal when Bovill admitted it. Just checked their recent IRS Form 990*** and wow! Bovill pulls down an annual salary package of $300,000! Doing well by doing good! https://refugeeresettlementwatch.org/2017/07/19/refugee-contractors-increasingly-admitting-they-cant-survive-without-your-money/
Crissie Ferrara, the program manager for services for New Americans at Ascentria Care Alliance, said a mother with five daughters will be moving soon, and likely staying with another family. Two individual men will also likely be arriving in Concord soon. Ferrara’s organization is responsible for finding housing for refugees and humanitarian evacuees, like the ones coming from Afghanistan.
Ferrara said that Ascentria has received an outpouring of support from people willing to share rooms in their homes with those coming from Afghanistan. Ideally, new families and individuals would be able to have the autonomy and independence of renting their own private housing, located near services in Concord.
The organization’s online form for landlords or property owners who want to provide housing to Afghan arrivals in New Hampshire and Massachusetts explains that independent affordable apartment housing options will be prioritized over people offering to host people in their homes. [What the heck! Let people take them to their homes! After all, what could go wrong!—ed]
Ferrara said Ascentria has suggested that single men without family in the United States be sent to [white rural!–ed] New Hampshire first, including men who may have made friends with another individual during the eviction [evacuation?] process.
See that there are additional ‘non-profits’ in on the action.
Use my search window for over two dozen post on New Hampshire—the ‘Live Free or Die’ state.
*** Most recent IRS Form 990 is here. Take a look at those salaries beginning on page 7! As I have said before, tell your kids to grow up to be executives at non-profit do-gooder religious charities!
As Dems turn their backs on a screwed up Iowa caucus and head to New Hampshire, Bernie Sanders, for one, is tapping into the immigrant/refugee community there for new socialist voters.
How One Campaign Is Organizing An Often-Overlooked N.H. Voting Bloc: Immigrants and Refugees
At first, the scene at the Manchester field office for the Bernie Sanders campaign looked pretty typical: Volunteers milled around after a presentation from campaign higher-ups, fielding invitations to sign up for canvassing shifts from campaign staffers armed with clipboards.
Suraj Budathoki, Bhutanese refugee, constituency director for Bernie Sanders’ presidential campaign in New Hampshire.
But in one corner of the room, a smaller group huddled together, listening intently to field organizer Susmik Lama, who was delivering a parallel set of instructions for the final weeks of the campaign — in Nepali.
[….]
While the pace of refugee resettlement has slowed in recent years, New Hampshire is still home to thousands of refugees and immigrants — including a large population hailing from Himalayan nations like Bhutan and Nepal.
Just so you know!
In 2006, the Bush Administration told the UN that we will take 60,000 over 5 yearsof the displaced ‘Bhutanese’(really people of Nepali origin) living in UN camps in Nepal. We had no national interest in the squabble between Bhutan and Nepal, nor did we have any wars going on in that region of the world!
As of today, according to the Refugee Processing Center, we have admitted 96,174 Bhutanese people to the US since Bush said 60,000 max.
Over 10,000 were placed in Pennsylvania, the top state for their resettlement. NH ‘welcomed’ over 2,000.
They are here now, voting the Republicans out of office whenever and wherever they can!
NHPR continues:
Refugees and immigrants can vote in U.S. elections after applying for U.S. citizenship, but engaging with these communities has — until now — been an afterthought for many local campaigns.
Suraj Budathoki, a former Bhutanese refugee who now works for the Sanders campaign, has made it his mission to change that.
“The Democratic Party thinks that votes of immigrants and refugees are sure votes for them; that’s a mistake,” he said. “They don’t tend to go to those people. They think that they’re going to come to them, vote for them. But they never go to their community and talk to them.”
In the wake of the news I reported yesterday, that Republican Governor Chris Sununu has said NH wants more refugees assuming cities concur, Concord Mayor Jim Bouley says he will support the continued placement of impoverished third worlders in his city.
Concord’s Democrat Mayor Jim Bouley: “I see no reason why we would not sign it” (at December 9th council meeting)
That isn’t surprising, but what did surprise me in this article from the Concord Monitoris that apparently guidance has gone out to those in the refugee industry about a December 20th deadline when both a state governor and someone (?) at the city/county level are in agreement that refugees are welcome, and that welcome must be forwarded in writing to the Secretary of State.
I’ve been searching and have yet to find any such published guidance. However, in this post and a couple more to follow I’ll tell you what I have found that should help you to know what you must do where you live.
So far as we have noted, six governors are on board for more refugees: Washington, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Utah, Virginia and now New Hampshire. North Dakota’s governor took a wishy-washy position and said he will go along if his cities want more refugees.
After Trump rule, Concord must opt-in to accept more refugees
For years, Concord has been a state leader in the acceptance of refugees, taking in more than any other New Hampshire city since 2010.
But whether that practice continues will require a sign-off from the city, following a new policy from President Donald Trump.
In an executive order issued in September, Trump required that both states and localities actively approve refugee resettlements moving forward. Without explicit written consent from both the state’s governor and the city or town, new outside refugees may not be housed in those cities, the order states – a change prompting outcry from refugee rights groups.
On Wednesday, Gov. Chris Sununu announced he had given that statewide consent, penning a letter to U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo granting permission for New Hampshire to accept refugees broadly. But he left it up to individual municipalities on how to proceed.
“With this action, it is now up to each city’s mayor whether they want to opt-in to accepting refugees,” Sununu said in a statement.
So far, I have been unable to find any published guidance referenced in this next line:
Now, the pressure is on. Cities and towns have until Dec. 20 to submit their letters of approval to accept resettlement of refugees, according to new guidance from the federal Health and Human Services department and the U.S. Secretary of State that follows the executive order. Sometime around Christmas, HHS will release a list of the states and municipalities that have done so, according to the order.
In an interview Friday, Concord Mayor Jim Bouley said he supports resettlement and that he’ll bring the question before the City Council at its Dec. 9 meeting.
“I see no reason why we would not sign it,” he said. “I think this only makes sense. So I look forward with the blessing of the council to sign it.”
I’m not the only one confused!
Meanwhile, as states and cities begin responding to the late December deadline, aspects of the new rule are in flux. Some refugee advocacy groups have called the executive order illegal, with the national Catholic Legal Immigration Network arguing it contravenes federal law giving the Office of Refugee Resettlement the authority to place refugees.
Manchester Mayor Joyce Craig is on board for more refugees and is just waiting for guidance about whether her whole council must sign off.
And the rules are silent on whether approval is necessary from select boards or city councils – or whether mayors can signal approval on their own prerogatives.
That uncertainty is creating some delays. Manchester Mayor Joyce Craig is supportive of continuing the acceptance of refugees, her office said Friday, but is seeking clarity on whether that move needs sign-off from the Queen City’s full city council.
Here is what I do know: The refugee industry has filed suit to stop the Executive Order,see here.
But they are also hedging their bets in case they can’t get it stopped in time which is why they have gone all-in for a grassroots campaign (more in my next post) to pressure governors and mayors into saying they want more refugees.
As I noted here, they see their grassroots and media campaign as a win-win. They can make Trump look bad, and at the same time force governors and local elected officials to go on record supporting more refugees. (They are looking ahead to the day when Trump is no longer in the White House and they expect the refugee spigot to open wide!)
And, although we see the Executive Order as flawed, you need to get moving and at least let your local elected officials (and governors) know that you are not in agreement with supporting more poor immigrants especially as there are plenty of vulnerable Americans in need of help.
If you remain silent then your elected officials will assume their position for more refugees will have no political cost to them.
And, if you are waiting for instructions from some immigration control organization, forget it!
Not sure if your town/city is already a resettlement site? See the State Department’s map here.
New Hampshire becomes the sixth state (that I know of) to tell the President that his/her state is all-in for more impoverished refugees. You can bet the Open Borders agitators are joyful about another Republican governor (see Utah) telling the Prez that the state is open for more third worlders.
Most recently I told you about Virginia jumping on the bandwagon bringing the number to five at that point: Pennsyvania, Washington, Oregon and Utah having expressed their desires earlier. North Dakota Gov. Burgum’s response is frankly wishy-washy leaving us uncertain about where he stands.
I’m keeping a list of the governors who want to see refugees numbers increased in their states here at RRWin the right hand sidebar.
Sununu Consents to Refugee Resettlement Following Exec Order
CONCORD, N.H. (AP) — New Hampshire Gov. Chris Sununu has consented to receiving refugees at the state level, in response to an executive order from President Donald Trump that requires consultation with states and municipalities about the settlement of refugees in specific areas.
Is that an America First! sign behind Republican Governor Chris Sununu? Hmmmm!
Trump issued the order in September saying the federal government should resettle refugees only in those jurisdictions in which both the state and local governments have consented to receive refugees.
Sununu, a Republican, said Friday his administration will work closely with area agencies to ensure that those who are resettled in New Hampshire have the chance to become “hardworking members of our local communities.”
New Hampshire municipalities can now opt-in to accept refugees.
Because there are no guidelines available yet (that I know of) on how the President’s September Executive Order is supposed to work, it isn’t clear how your community will opt-in or out!
But, as you saw in my posttwo days ago, 88 mayors are declaring they are in!
Other than to satisfy their Leftwing constituents, these governors don’t need to be making any public declarations until some guidelines come from Washington.
So, it is up to you to let them know that this embrace of more refugees is not a political freebie for them. There is a political cost to their declaration.
You are likely very well aware of the Somali former refugee running for Congress to replace Rep. Keith Ellison (the first Muslim man in Congress). Ilhan Omar has a compelling story of sorts as allegations continue to surface that Omar married her brother in some complicated immigration fraud scheme.
Well the first refugee woman ever to run for the State legislature in New Hampshire used her compelling story (the Left loves compelling stories and the media laps them up!) to defeat a longtime Democrat in the primary.
By the way, Omar also unseated an incumbent Democrat in her primary in Minnesota.
But, I am posting the story of Afghan (via Uzbekistan) refugee, Safiya Wazir, because a bit of her story is instructive about the funny business in the US Refugee Admissions Program.
Here is the news from PRI (Hat tip: Joanne). It is a long story so I am skipping to the sections I found most informative.
This former refugee could win a seat in one of the whitest statehouses in America
For the Left, Wazir’s win is more about sticking it to Trump then Wazir herself. She received 329 votes to Patten’s 143. So 329 people have catapulted her to international stardom. https://irontrianglepress.com/2018/09/14/a-refugee-wins-in-trumps-america/
She was 6 when violence divided her home, Afghanistan. Wazir remembers bombings and shooting when the Taliban arrived. Her dad was able to get the family out of the country.
[….]
“I remember my dad being in a black car sitting in front and I was sitting in the back with my mom, putting my head down on her lap, that far I remember,” Wazir says. “And then after that, I have no idea.”
They went to Uzbekistan. It was 1997. Wazir learned Russian.
So they had been safely settled (for ten years!) in Uzbekistan, a Muslim country adjoining their home country. Why were they even a candidate for resettlement to America?
Wazir remembers being in a meeting with a refugee resettlement agency, where her dad asked to be sent somewhere peaceful. They landed in Concord in 2007. [She would be a George W. Bush refugee. Bush’s State Department was doing some questionable activity in Uzbekistan at the time.—ed]
[….]
After graduation, when Wazir was in community college, one subject kept coming up at home. It was time for her to get married.
“I would be like, ‘Mom, it’s too early. Just forget it,’” she says.
But Wazir’s mother won that debate.
So Wazir went to Afghanistan, married the man her parents chose for her and came back.
She went back to the country she escaped from?
The country where her family said they would be persecuted and thus feared to return, which is the whole basis for a refugee status determination in the first place!
It the President wants to reform the US Refugee Admissions Program, one easy fix is to disallow any returns, ever, for any reason, to the country a refugee said was unsafe for them.
We hear it all the time, Somalis go back to Somalia to visit the family (or whatever!), some (Bosnians) return to their countries of supposed persecution to sell property, and we even learned that Syrians traveled back for religious holidays. Frankly, it is outrageous!
The PRI storycontinues with many paragraphs about unwelcoming New Hampshire.
Wazir’s friend, an African refugee thought of running for office, but he thought it would be hopeless in white New Hampshire. Here is what he said about Wazir.
D’Almeida had thought about running for office himself — maybe city council — but he dismissed the idea as impossible. And in the end, that’s why he thinks Wazir is running for office: to prove a refugee can.
But, bottomline is that if you are a minority, especially a refugee, a female refugee, with a warm and fuzzy personal story then the sky is the limit for your political aspirations.
