The notice came in the form of a letter from the Office of Refugee Resettlement that serves as a reminder that states may not discriminate on the basis of race, sex, and, most importantly, religion or country of origin. Father Bernard Healey, director of the Rhode Island Catholic Conference, spoke on behalf of the Diocese of Providence.
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Most of the refugees have moved into countries near Syria, including Turkey and Jordan. “Welcoming the homeless and the stranger is a fundamental part of our faith”.
Obama next asserted: “There’s the generosity of Americans who take part not just in Black Friday and Cyber Monday, but Giving Tuesday – recognizing that in the holiday season, what you give is as important as what you get”.
“Syrian refugees are subject to even more precautions than other refugees”, he added. All of the confirmed attackers have been identified as French nationals thus far.
“Accordingly, states may not categorically deny ORR-funded benefits and services to Syrian refugees”, the letter said. Legal experts have told The Associated Press previously that federal law being cited by Abbott and others primarily concerns states’ rights to consult in the process of resettling refugees.
The bill’s backers say that if the Obama administration has really vetted all of the refugees as it says, such certification should be easy and will go a long way toward ensuring Americans that someone is directly responsible for the program.
Despite heated debates in state houses across the nation, the decision regarding refugees remains in the hands of the federal government. The House has passed a bill that would effectively ban Syrian refugees altogether despite the most stringent screening policies in the world. The agency did not provide data on how many of those refugees were Syrians. Hickenlooper recognizes that his power to stop refugees from being resettled in Colorado is limited. “These are our people, our children”.
The WFP has reported that numerous refugees are seeking new places to live precisely because they can’t survive where they are. “We’re waiting to hear what that is, but we feel good about it”, she said. One candidate said a Muslim should not be allowed to run for president.
“We equip churches to respond tangibly”, Yang said.
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Questions about the possible entry into the U.S.by extremists tied to Islamic State militants who control large swaths of Syria and Iraq have been raised since a string of violent attacks in Paris Nov. 13 and the downing of a Russian jetliner over Egypt’s Sinai desert October 31, all claimed by the organization. In a poll at the time, 61 percent of the US public disapproved of admitting 10,000 (mostly Jewish) refugee children from Germany. But Obama is speaking to his people in the language they know best: the language of fairy tales and folklores.
