The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Indianapolis has resettled a family of Syrian refugees in Indianapolis despite Governor Mike Pence’s suspension of state assistance for resettlement of Syrians in Indiana.
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Thomas Aquinas Catholic Center said people are either motivated by love or by fear.
Despite the church’s call to keep the door open to refugees, Pence met last week with local Catholic leaders to urge them to “defer from welcoming” a Syrian family seeking placement in the state until Congress passed new legislation providing more stringent security screening for refugees from Syria, Indianapolis Archbishop Joseph W. Tobin said in a statement on Tuesday.
Pence spent about an hour at his Statehouse office with Tobin amid a dispute over the Republican governor’s order blocking state agencies from assisting Syrian refugees in response to the deadly Paris attacks last month. “The State of IN will continue to suspend its participation IN the resettlement of Syrian refugees IN IN until the federal government takes action to address the concerns raised about this program”.
“These are little differences, but they are important differences for those who are willing to listen to a longer explanation”, he said. “I don’t think I could get in”.
In a statement released by the Archbishop he says that he “prayerfully considered” Pence’s request but ultimately informed staff at Catholic Charities to proceed with the plans.
“The safety and security of the people of IN is Governor Pence’s top priority”, according to the statement.
“We welcome this family during Advent, a time when the Christian community asks God to renew our hope and recognize God’s saving power among us”, Reverend Tobin said in a statement.
In the statement Tobin said the family arrived in Indianapolis on Monday night and are safe.
Additionally, the Civil Rights Act prohibits states from denying federally funded benefits to eligible refugees.
The archdiocese last week said it had come up with enough private donations to support the family.
However on Tuesday the governor tweeted in response to Trump’s Muslim ban, “Calls to ban Muslims from entering the US are offensive and unconstitutional”.
Despite Abbott’s fervent objections, the family arrived in Dallas on Monday where they will live with relatives, a spokeswoman for the International Rescue Committee, who assisted with the resettlement, told the Associated Press.
Texas’ health commissioner sent letters to refugee resettlement agencies threatening them with the loss of state cooperation if they continued to bring in Syrians.
Carrigan declined to make family members available for an interview, but she said they were not fazed by the state’s fight or concerns that they might not be welcome in Texas. Pence said afterward that he asked Tobin to not resettle the family in the state.
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The state has since backed down from an immediate demand to halt the arrival of Syrian refugees.
