Friends of Refugees is an independent, nonpartisan citizens group monitoring the U.S. refugee resettlement program.
Posted by Christopher Coen on February 29, 2012
This is an extra scene from Nickel City Smiler, a documentary film about Karen refugees in Buffalo. Donna Pepero, head of the Refugee School Impact Program in the Buffalo Public Schools, talks about a resettlement agency in Buffalo that dropped off a refugee family to an apartment furnished with just part of a sectional sofa – not even any beds:
Posted in Buffalo, Burma/Myanmar, Catholic Charities of Buffalo, furnishings, lack of, International Institute of Buffalo, Jewish Family Service of Buffalo & Erie County, Journey's End Refugee Services, Journey's End Refugee Services, Karen | Tagged: Buffalo, documentary, Donna Pepero, Nickel City Smiler, Refugee School Impact Program, refugees, resettlement | Leave a Comment »
Posted by Christopher Coen on February 28, 2012
A 14-passenger 2002 Chevrolet Express van overloaded with 17 people, many of them not wearing seat belts, rolled over on I-96 in Michigan near Grand Rapids. An 18-year-old Burundian refugee named Ombeni Erasto died, and his sister reportedly lost part of her leg. Several other people in the van were injured. State police said the van’s rear tire blew, causing the 22-year-old driver to lose control. An article at the Lansing State Journal gives some details:
LOWELL TWP. — The Lansing teenager who died Sunday in an accident near Grand Rapids was on his way home from a church choir performance that he had been looking forward to for a while, said his younger brother.
Omberi Erasto, 18…was one of 17 people ranging in age from infant to adult in a 14-passenger 2002 Chevrolet Express van, which was traveling east on Interstate 96 in Lowell Township. State police said the van’s rear tire blew, causing the 22-year-old Lansing driver to lose control. The van struck another vehicle and slid sideways off the roadway.
The accident killed Erasto, a senior at Lansing Eastern High School. Several relatives, including three of his sisters, also were injured in the accident, said Erasto’s younger brother, Shukurani Nyabenda, 16. Nyabenda said other family members were also in the van…
…His family came to Michigan from Tanzania as refugees about five years ago, Nyabenda said. Erasto was born in Burundi… Read more here
…and this from WOOD-TV 8:
LANSING, Mich. (WOOD) – The 15-passenger van that overturned along I-96 Sunday carried 17 members of Lansing’s Burundi Choir who were returning home after a concert in Grand Rapids.
Ombeni Erasto died in the crash , and his sister reportedly lost part of her leg. Several other people were injured, and many were not wearing seat belts.
The group includes many Burundi refugees who fled their country during the civil war and ended up in Tanzanian refugee camps… Read more here
A report from the WILX media outlet says that out of the 17 on board, over half were under the age of 18, including three infants.
These vans are not safe when used for their intended purpose of carrying the maximum allowable number of passengers. The vans should never be overloaded, and must be underloaded. In addition, fuel tanks should be kept full to help lower the center of gravity, all passengers must wear seat belts, tires must be regularly inspected, and only people experienced with driving passenger vans should be at the wheel.
In December three refugees died in a passenger van rollover in Amarillo, Texas. Another van rolled in November near Rushmore, Minnesota. In early 2011 there were van rollover accidents involving refugees in central Georgia (and here) and northern Georgia. A passenger van rollover in Arizona in 2009 killed six refugees.
Posted in Burundian, churches, Michigan, teenagers, passenger van roll-over, Lansing | Tagged: refugees, resettlement, Burundi, Burundian, rollover, roll-over, Lansing, passenger van, Chevrolet Express, Grand Rapids, Ombeni Erasto | 5 Comments »
Posted by Christopher Coen on February 27, 2012
Vermont is now trying to make public safety of paramount concern irrespective of race, gender, sexual orientation or any other characteristic. Up until now people have used law enforcement and other instruments of the state to play out personal prejudices against minorities, or anyone else seen as vulnerable or an easy victim. Even today in Vermont police are more likely to stop and ticket minority drivers and search their vehicles, according to a recent study. Now the state government is trying to make sure that there is a legitimate reason for troopers to come into contact with minorities, and not stopping people just for being a minority – or sending out a police cruiser because black men are standing in the park wearing baggy shorts. An AP article at The Caledonian Express explains:
MONTPELIER, Vt. (AP) — With its small but rapidly growing minority population, Vermont’s top law enforcement officials and lawmakers are trying to ensure the state’s African-Americans, Hispanic immigrants and other minorities don’t feel the sting of discrimination.
Yet discrimination appears to be finding its way into the actions of at least some members of Vermont’s law enforcement community and the percentage of African-American inmates in the state’s prisons is 10 times their rate in the population, a figure that has doubled in the past decade, statistics show.
So state police are setting out to improve training to ensure that there is a legitimate reason for troopers to come into contact with minorities — and when they do, that minorities are treated the same as white Vermonters…
…thousands of refugees and others have moved to Vermont and the same census found minorities made up 36.8 percent of the state’s new residents…
…[A] study of 50,000 traffic stops done by the Vermont State Police for the year ending last July found minority drivers were more likely to be stopped and ticketed and their vehicles searched than white drivers.
Appel said that in the past 2½ years, the commission he leads has received 10 complaints from black drivers or passengers alleging racially biased treatment by Vermont law enforcement agencies, a substantial portion of his organization’s caseload.
“We’d like to think we are an enlightened state and in many ways we are, but if you talk to people who are members of the communities of color … there are numerous examples of bad experiences that you and I as white folks wouldn’t have,” state Rep. Suzi Wizowaty…
…”The only counter to bias is looking at data and making the facts more available to your consciousness and taking into consideration the fact that you might be biased,” she said…
…”The state police get this, they are sometimes the only direct contact that a visitor will have with an official of Vermont,” [said Curtiss Reed Jr, the executive director of the Brattleboro-based Vermont Partnership for Fairness and Diversity]…
…”How do you conduct your policing in such a way that people walk away from it feeling as though, ‘Oh, in Vermont I understand that public safety is of paramount concern irrespective of race, gender, sexual orientation or any other characteristic’?”
[Robert Appel, the executive director of the Vermont Human Rights Commission] has worked for five years to address the issues with the chiefs of police in Chittenden County, where most of the state’s minority population lives. Those agencies are adapting.
“They get calls from community members saying there are three African-American men standing in the park wearing baggy shorts, please send a cruiser,” Appel said. “In the old days they would send a cruiser, but there’s no reason to send a cruiser without some indicator that they are engaging in criminal activity.”
Now the dispatchers have been trained to ask the caller if there is any indication a crime has been or is about to be committed. If the answer is no, the caller is told that no officers will be sent.
Then the dispatcher transfers the call to the shift supervisor, Appel said, “to explain what the Constitution says, which is if you’re not breaking the law you have a right to be left alone.” Read more here
Posted in police, Vermont | Tagged: law enforcement, minorites, police, prejudice, refugees, resettlement, Vermont | Leave a Comment »
Posted by Christopher Coen on February 24, 2012
Over the past several weeks has came news that Israel will deport southern Sudanese refugees to South Sudan, claiming that their safety is now ensured by the South’s declaration of independence last summer — even though the fledgling country is far from safe or stable for these refugees (see Haaretz article). What sense this makes escapes me since the southern Sudanese are natural allies of Israel, having experienced large-scale murderous attacks by the Islamist government of Sudan. At the same time, Israel is also ramping up hatred of other African refugees feeling persecution. (Israel has re-branded these refugees as “infiltrators” and “a threat to the fabric of Jewish society” — refusing to accept 1500 people per month, mostly African Muslims, while importing workers for cheap labor from East Asia – primarily the Philippines and Thailand.) When will we hear US refugee agencies speak out against these human rights violations? An article in Aljazeera explains the situation:
…The notion of a “Jewish and democratic state”, never a feasible reality, continues to unravel as its inherent racism is revealed in a new way. Any political discussion of refugees that are of the wrong ethnicity inevitably refers to African migration to Israel as an “existential threat”. Labelling these refugees as “threats” allows the state to criminalise and imprison them…
…State officials estimate that around 2,000 asylum seekers enter the country every month. Most of the men end up in Levinsky Park in southern Tel Aviv. At any time during the day or night, one can find young black African men sitting on the park’s benches, swings and concrete walls. In late January, a man who lived in the park died from exposure during the night.
The majority of the men who live in Levinsky Park are from Eritrea and Darfur…
…While community members and organisations have responded to the refugee-related crises developing in the country’s founding city by setting up an emergency shelter and serving warm dinners to a hungry crowd, these generous gestures are the exception in a state that fosters growing hostility to outsiders…
…”This is how the public becomes racist,” Yohannes Bayu, the director of African Refugee Development Centre (ARDC), tells me, explaining the government’s campaign against African asylum seekers, who are labelled as “labour infiltrators”…
…the media and the government has ramped up this hatred,” explains Bayu.
But Bayu adds that overt racism in Israeli society has become common, “People are attacked on the streets. People are not allowed to rent houses to African refugees.”…
…The desperate men – and some women – who leave their families and homelands behind in Africa escape torture, forced military conscription and murder. As confirmed by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), Eritrea and Sudan have been two of the top producers of refugees over the past two years. These states’ betrayals of their own citizens have rendered tens of thousands stateless.
Conventions and detentions
Israeli politicians’ claims that only a “drizzle” of the African immigrants are rightfully refugees is quickly belied by the fact that almost none of the men are deported. Of the approximately 17,000 asylum seekers who reached Israel in 2011 via Egypt, only 270 have been returned to Egypt. Israel is a party to the 1951 Convention relating to the Status of Refugees…
However, allowing asylum seekers to remain in the country without rights hardly fulfills the directions of the Convention, which was composed in 1951 after the world saw and acknowledged the dangers posed to stateless human beings.
Before reaching Israel’s borders, asylum seekers from Eritrea and Sudan must survive a harrowing journey across the Sinai. They routinely experience rape and enslavement, and are reportedly the targets of organ traffickers.
Whether jumping the fence or walking across the border into Israel, asylum seekers are immediately picked up by border police and taken to a detention centre where they are held for weeks or months. …immigration authorities will begin holding these men to the extent of [a] new law – three years – once [a] new detention centre is built…
…for now the scenario for these men follows a predictable pattern: They are released in less than three months and given a three to six-month visa and then bussed up to Levinsky Park in Tel Aviv, where they are left to fend for themselves… Read more here
Posted in abuse, Eritrean, Jewish, left-wing, NGO's (Non-governmental organizations), safety, Sudanese, UN (United Nations), xenophobia/nationalism/isolationism | Tagged: 1951 Convention relating to the Status of Refugees, Darfur, Eritrean, human rights, israel, Levinsky Park, racism, refugees, resettlement, sudanese | 5 Comments »
Posted by Christopher Coen on February 23, 2012
A Baptist organization is hoping to lead Nepali-Bhutanese refugees in Dallas away from their Hindu cultural roots. Segue Refugee Partners Ministries will help out the refugees as a prelude to their agenda.
Will they be honest and upfront with the refugees and tell them what the plan is?
…Matthew Johnston and Elizabeth Hall lead Segue Refugee Partners Ministries, the nonprofit organization… They have been connecting with Bhutanese refugees for more than a year…Segue’s vision is to build partnerships and relationships between these Bhutanese refugees and American Christians who are willing to relate and help out in whatever way they can. The refugees have a variety of needs, from help them deal with insurance-related issues regarding health care to finding jobs in the city. The hope is also to lead the refugees from a Hindu background into a relationship with Jesus Christ… Read more here
Posted in Baptist, converting refugees, Dallas/Fort Worth, faith-based, Hindu, Nepali Bhutanese | Tagged: bhutanese, dallas, nepalese, Nepali, refugees, religious conversion, resettlement, Segue Refugee Partners Ministries | Leave a Comment »
Posted by Christopher Coen on February 22, 2012
In 2010, the US Department of State doubled the initial per-refugee resettlement stipend to $1800 (while allowing resettlement contractors to keep $700 of that for overhead). Today they announced (below) that they have raised it again this year. (It would be refreshing if they made some of these announcements before they make the decisions, and not after, to allow for public response). When they decide to give us the rest of the details perhaps they will tell us how much of that increase they will allow for the contractors’ overhead (all of it should go directly to the refugees). If the non-profit agencies – resettlement contractors – actually make real private contributions (once claimed as 25 cents for each dollar given by the State Department, or feds, although no proof offered) then I guess I don’t understand why, at the very least, they can’t pay their own overhead costs.
…We understand that the current economic situation is challenging the ability of federal, state, and non-profit agencies to broadly assist refugees in need. In response, in 2010, the Department of State doubled the per-refugee stipend, and raised it again this year. The refugee admissions program is a public-private partnership. As such, non-profit agencies involved have also increased efforts to raise private resources to support refugees in need. And some businesses are stepping in to assist as well…
Kind regards,
David M. Robinson
Acting Assistant Secretary
Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration Read more here
Posted in Assistant Secretary of the PRM, funding, public/private partnership, R&P | Tagged: David Robinson, federal contractors, federal funding, refugees, resettlement | 2 Comments »
Posted by Christopher Coen on February 22, 2012
Yesterday, the ORR put out a PR-like statement about the launch of its new website (see below). Last year at this time the ORR was three years behind on its annual report to congress. I wrote to my senator to ask how much longer the congress was going to tolerate this and his office said that they were promising to get one report out quite soon (the FY 2008 report came out in May 2011) and then a second one would be out some months after that (FY 2009 still not released). It seems like congressional offices are more than satisfied with these type of responses (a mere positive sounding answer somehow instills trust). Now, a year later the ORR is right back to where it was – three years behind on these reports, hence, this question: how did they find all the time to revamp the website, which now includes testimonials from happy refugee clients, when they are not fulfilling other basic responsibilities?
Greetings,
The Office of Refugee Resettlement is pleased to introduce you to…ORR’s new home page, where you will find the latest ORR news, stories of those who have participated in our programs and links to useful resources. From refugee assistance to anti-trafficking in persons, this new website features grantees and participants who are part of the growing ORR family, providing new populations with the opportunity to maximize their potential…
Thank you for your continued interest in the work of the Office of Refugee Resettlement.
Eskinder Negash
Director
Posted in Annual Report to Congress, ORR | Tagged: annual report to congress, Eskinder Negash, Office of Refugee Resettlement, ORR, refugees, resettlement | 1 Comment »
Posted by Christopher Coen on February 21, 2012
***UPDATE*** Feb. 23, 2012 — Refugee woman in Colorado Springs bilked out of $1600
The ORR gave the following update today regarding a telephone scam targeting Bhutanese refugees first reported in January:
In early January, we circulated a message concerning a telephone scam targeting refugees. At that time, a man was calling Bhutanese refugees, identifying himself as a representative of the “Federal Grants Department” from a Washington, DC-based telephone number, 202-436-9601, informing recently resettled refugees that they were eligible to receive $10,000 because they are refugees from Bhutan. To claim the money, they were instructed to produce a money order for $650, and call the telephone number for further instructions on where to send the money.
We have received updated reports that the scam is still on-going, but some of the details have since changed. Most recently, refugees (again, still Bhutanese) have received calls from a man who identifies himself as “Nathan Price with the IRS” calling from a different DC-based telephone number, 202-657-4189, who instructs the refugees to have money wired to various people in India.
The most recent target of this scam lost over $6,000.
ORR advises everyone to be aware of this scam, and avoid giving any personal information or making payments to unknown callers.
Please note that the federal government does not demand processing fees, security deposits, or overseas wire transfers from grant recipients or refugees. If you are the target of a suspicious request, please contact your local police or resettlement agency for further assistance.
Posted in Nepali Bhutanese, ORR, scams | Tagged: bhutanese, refugees, resettlement, scams | 1 Comment »
Posted by Christopher Coen on February 20, 2012
Con artists continue their evil ways with our refugee population, looking to victimize those who are the most vulnerable. Scams include selling immigration forms (these forms are free), and taking money for green cards, 1-94 cards and the immigrant lottery (and then disappearing with the money). Refugees may report scams anonymously, by using the website uscis.gov, or by calling 1-877-382-4357. An article in the Union Leader explains the various cons and how refugees can report them:
…Scams…are occurring daily across New Hampshire and other states, according to local Immigration officials…
“There are people out there that are victimizing members of [the refugee and immigrant] community because they think they won’t be a good witness,” said Alfred Rubega, assistant U.S. attorney for New Hampshire. “I think they are going to find out pretty quickly in New Hampshire that is not at all a good idea.”
On Wednesday, authorities held a news conference to explain the Unlawful Practice of Immigration Law Initiative, a program intended to help catch con artists. The initiative is a joint effort among the USCIS, the Department of Homeland Security, the Department of Justice and the Federal Trade Commission.
The initiative is built on three pillars: enforcement, education and collaboration. It is intended to stop scams and prosecute those responsible; educate immigrants about scams and how to avoid them; and inform immigrants about the proper, legal immigration process and where to find legitimate legal advice and representation…
…Different cons
One of the more popular scams uses websites to advertise immigration services or pertinent forms for a fee. One clue a website is phony is when it ends in anything other than the “.gov” tag.
“We’ve heard reports that people have fallen victim to these bogus websites,” said Simon Abi Nader, field office director for USCIS’ Bedford branch. “The simple reason is that the general public does not know the difference between ‘.gov’ and ‘.com,’ which is a public domain. The government owns .gov, and no one can imitate that. All USCIS forms are free.”…
…Community groups helping to prevent scams say immigrants in New Hampshire have been fleeced out of thousands of dollars. Cathy Chesley, director of Catholic Charities Office of Immigration and Refugee Services, said she has seen many victims.
“I know one family that’s out $7,000,” said Chesley. “Just gone.”…
…One example
One man accidentally let I-94 cards — temporary visas — for his entire family go through the laundry in his jeans, said Amy Marchildon, director of Services for Lutheran Social Services of New Hampshire. “He paid someone $2,000 to replace one card, and nothing happened,” she said. The legitimate cost of replacing an I-94 is $365.
One immigrant applied for the State Department’s lottery visa program, Nader said.
“This person worked with someone who said they would help her get the papers for the lottery. For months down the road, she received this email saying that she won the lottery and that the next step is you send me $2,500 money order and wire it this way,” Nader said…
…The person disappeared, and her $2,500 disappeared with them.”…
…Nader said individuals could report scams anonymously, by using the website uscis.gov, or by calling 1-877-382-4357… Read more here
Posted in Catholic Charities (Manchester), immigration documents, immigration services, Lutheran Social Services of New Hampshire, New Hampshire, safety, scams, USCIS, visa lottery | Tagged: 1-94 card, catholic charities, green card, immigrant lottery, Lutheran Social Services of New Hampshire, refugees, resettlement, Unlawful Practice of Immigration Law Initiative, USCIS | Leave a Comment »
Posted by Christopher Coen on February 19, 2012
A local friend of the Bhutanese refugees in Harrisburg contacted us to report that the attacks on the refugees have continued since police reported earlier this month that they suspected a small group of local teens.
I live near Harrisburg Pennsylvania and became involved with the refugee community there in 2010. I am deeply troubled by the victimization that they experience and would like to see more attention brought to it…most of it in the area on Green Street, but some in the area of Magnolia Hill (Thomas street off of Market). Robberies, assaults, and even entry into homes. It has them afraid to be outside. Some families have already fled the Green Street area…[since the police began investigating a group of teenagers] the problems haven’t gotten better…it’s probably the same…kids. Police don’t really help. However, the refugees are starting to think defensively. I’ve bought pepper spray for some of them and instructed them on its use.
Posted in Harrisburg-Mechanicsburg, Nepali Bhutanese, police, safety | Tagged: assaults, bhutanese, crime spree, Green Street, home invasion, Magnolia Hill, nepalese, refugees, resettlement, robberies | 2 Comments »
Christopher Coen
Melissa Sogard
nancylee1
