On February 12, MidPoint hosted Sylvia Acevedo, Dir. of Refugee Wellness Programs, and Abdel Dana Roca, Dir. of Refugee Employment & Case Management from the Gulf Coast Jewish Family & Community Services (GCJFCS) Refugee Resettlement project. They discussed the status of their programs now that the Trump administration has ended all refugee admissions to the United States (other than admission for white South Africans,) and has rescinded funding for the resettlement programs that are still needed, especially for the newly admitted refugees who arrived before the Trump administration’s Stop Order.
Gulf Coast JFCS’s refugee department works to help newly arrived refugees integrate into their new communities by providing housing, employment assistance, and cultural orientation. They serve refugees from many different countries, all of whom are fleeing persecution and violence in their home countries. In recent years, their project has assisted large numbers of refugees from Afghanistan who had assisted the U.S. military in fighting the Taliban and then were endangered by the abrupt withdrawal of US forces from Afghanistan. They also assisted many Ukrainians who fled the violence after Russia invaded Ukraine and refugees from African areas of conflict.
Refugees Are Legal Immigrants
Our guests emphasized that all of their clients are LEGAL immigrants to the United States, and all have undergone a rigorous vetting process to ensure they are eligible to be admitted to the U.S. However, now they are scared they may be targets of indiscriminate ICE round-ups and deportations and worried that the resources that they had counted on to assist them in building a life in their new country will not be available.
What Now?
The future of the GCJFCS refugee resettlement program is now in flux since the stop order. Though their other sources of funding have not been canceled…yet, will they be able to sustain their programs into a future where they may not have new refugee clients to assist? It remains an open question. In the meantime, however, they are working through the current funding cuts, adapting their staff and more limited resources to the changes, and doing their best to continue to provide the assistance necessary to serve their current clients. They are looking for landlords with properties willing to affordably rent to refugee families and recruiting local families who can take in refugee families and mentor them to help acclimate them to their new country.
If you can assist GCJFCS with these measures with a financial donation, or if you wish to volunteer to assist or mentor families registering children for school and applying for federal benefits, or if you have items of furniture or household goods to help them build a home, contact GCJFCS directly for more information.
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