Adler: ‘Moral imperative’ to admit Syrian refugees
Following pledges from more than two dozen governors to not resettle Syrian refugees in their states, the White House featured two city government officials on a Monday conference call — Austin Mayor Steve Adler and Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan — who said it’s safe to accept ref- ugees.
Adler and Duggan, who are both Democrats in states with Republican governors, spoke after Deputy Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas said the process for admitting refugees, who must have been persecuted in the past or have a fear of future persecution, is “comprehensive, multilayered and exhaus-
tive” and takes 18 to 24 months on average.
Those who are believed to pose a higher security concern, such as single males ages 16 to 50 from Iraq and Syria, undergo an additional security check using law enforcement and intelligence databases, Mayorkas said.
Adler said some Austin residents are concerned about accepting refugees after the terrorist attacks in Paris because they’ve “watched Internet videos that are designed to bring fear” and have heard confusing or contradictory statements in political debates.
Without mentioning Austin City Council Member Don Zimmerman, Adler also addressed one concern raised by his conservative colleague, who is proposing a resolution that would block the city government from helping Syrian refugees resettle, including spending taxpayer dollars on such efforts. No city tax dollars fund refugee resettlement, Adler said.
“There’s a moral imperative here,” Adler said. “These are folks that are fleeing horrific conditions.”
The nonprofit Caritas of Austin has processed three Syrian refugees in the past two years, including everything from picking refugees up at the airport to renting an apartment to providing case management services, Adler said. Refugees are considered independent once they are employed and have a grasp of the English language, he said.
In September, as European nations dealt with a flood of refugees from Syria, President Barack Obama directed his administration to accept at least 10,000 Syrian refugees in the next year.
After the Paris attacks, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott wrote in a letter to Obama that the state would not accept Syrian refugees and that the federal government’s security checks of Syrians are inadequate. The letter said there was a “very real threat” to Texas from the Islamic State, referring to the May shootings in Garland and arrests of terrorists in the state.
The federal government has told Caritas it’s not sending any Syrian refugees to Austin in 2016, Adler said.
In a message at odds with Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder’s recent announcement that he was suspending the state’s effort to resettle Syrian refugees, Duggan said Detroit committed to hosting 50 such families per year over the next three years.
“Every mayor of every major city in this country is very conscious of the terrorist threat, which is very real,” Duggan said. “But the question is, ‘Do we respond to it with fear and panic? Or do we respond to it with thoughtfulness and resolve?’”
In Austin, refugee resettlement organizations continued Monday to fight back against an order from state officials to stop offering help to Syrian refugees.
Shutting the door to people in dire need is “unacceptable, inhumane and un-American,” Aaron Rippenkroeger, chief executive of Refugee Services of Austin, said at a news conference Monday.
Refugees are fleeing life-threatening danger through no fault of their own, he said. “They are not political footballs,” Rippenkroeger said.
Austin City Council Member Greg Casar criticized Abbott and other elected officials for playing on “xenophobia, fear and hate.” City officials, he said, will continue to welcome refugees while focusing on the same public safety concerns identified by most residents — issues such as police response times and pedestrian protection.
“Anything the City Council needs to do to support refugees, we will do that and continue to do that,” Casar said.