FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Feb. 4, 2021 WASHINGTON–Refugee Congress applauds President Biden’s executive order to restore and enhance the refugee resettlement program and his announcement of plans to set the refugee admissions goal at 125,000, which he has indicated would happen in Fiscal Year 2022 after consultations with Congress in the fall. “Refugee Congress applauds the current administration for taking strides […]
WASHINGTON–Yesterday the Biden administration signed three executive orders that begin the process of reversing the damage done by the previous administration to immigration and asylum protection systems in the U.S. “We commend the president on taking these first steps towards keeping his promise to restore the U.S. to its place as a global humanitarian leader and a country of welcome, […]
Today Refugee Congress celebrates the life and legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. This year, MLK Day comes after the divide, unrest, racial injustice and pain this nation has endured over the past year. Ninety-two years after Dr. King’s birth, we continue to be inspired by his life of service and commitment to equality and justice. As a civil […]
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Jan. 7, 2021 WASHINGTON–Refugee Congress condemns the violent actions of the mob at the U.S. Capitol yesterday and calls for a peaceful transition of power to the Biden-Harris Administration. As former refugees and asylum-seekers, Refugee Congress Delegates and Honorary Delegates have fled violence and know firsthand the tragedies and loss that come with anti-democratic violence. To many […]
Refugee Congress is delighted to announce our December Call for Nominations for New Delegates. We are currently recruiting for the following states: Arkansas, Massachusetts, Mississippi, Montana, New Jersey, Oregon, South Carolina, West Virginia, California, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Iowa, Maine, Michigan, Nebraska, New Mexico, North Carolina, South Dakota, Virginia and Wisconsin At Refugee Congress, elected Delegates may serve up to two three-year […]
WASHINGTON—Refugee Congress condemns a new asylum rule published by the Trump administration that would significantly restrict asylum eligibility and further eliminate opportunities for people seeking asylum to be granted protection from persecution. The rule would limit what qualifies as persecution. It would exclude gender and gang violence as eligible claims and would require an asylum-seeker to prove a higher level […]
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Dec. 10, 2020 WASHINGTON–Today Refugee Congress marks Human Rights Day, the anniversary of the day the United Nations adopted the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) in 1948. The UDHR proclaims everyone’s inalienable rights as a human being, regardless of race, color, religion, sex, language, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth or other […]
Refugee Congress is very excited to welcome new Delegates to represent six states. We are pleased to introduce: Delegate for Alaska: Mahdi Akal Mahdi is a former refugee originally from Somalia and lived in multiple Middle Eastern countries before resettling in Alaska in 2014. He works as an educator at the Anchorage Museum. Delegate for Kansas – Gedeon Bahemuka Jino […]
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Nov. 9, 2020 WASHINGTON—Refugee Congress congratulates President-Elect Joe Biden and Vice-President-Elect Kamala Harris. “We are encouraged by President-Elect Biden’s stated commitment to welcome refugees and immigrants, restore the refugee resettlement program and provide asylum protections,” said Lourena Gboeah, Chairperson of the Refugee Congress Board of Directors and Delegate for Delaware. “We look forward to working with the […]
State: Alaska Country of Origin: Somalia Mahdi Akal is the Refugee Congress Delegate for Alaska and an educator at the Anchorage Museum. Akal is a former refugee originally from Somalia and was raised in multiple Middle Eastern countries before resettling in Alaska from Egypt in 2014.
Refugee Congress strongly denounces the Trump Administration’s new record-low refugee admissions goal of just 15,000 refugees — which includes 6,000 spots that went unused in fiscal year 2020. Since taking office, the Trump Administration has been dismantling and destroying the U.S. refugee resettlement program. The program has historically had strong bipartisan support, with a historic norm over the past four […]
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Oct. 1, 2020 WASHINGTON – Refugee Congress strongly denounces the Trump Administration’s proposal to resettle just 15,000 refugees this year — the lowest refugee admissions goal in U.S. history. Since taking office, the Trump Administration has sought to dismantle and destroy the U.S. refugee resettlement program. Last year, the Administration did not set a refugee admissions goal […]
Refugee Congress Delegate Ekhlas Ahmed (Maine) talks about coping with the uncertainty of the COVID pandemic and the work she is doing to support fellow community members: “Refugees fill these rolls, because we want to give back to the country that welcomed us. But we also do it because selflessness eases our suffering. I became an ESOL teacher five years […]
Refugee Congress Delegate Jihan Daman (Michigan) talks about her work helping trauma victims in the U.S.: “This is who refugees are. They are people like me, and my brothers. There are millions of refugees who work long hours each day, who go to school, who build communities.” Read the Newsweek article
Refugee Congress Delegates and others talk about racial justice and the Black Lives Matter movement. Read the article on Medium by UNHCR