Refugee advocates say that these Iraqi translators and other staff are on the hit list of the Islamic State and other militant groups due to their work with the American government and other USA organizations.
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Obama compared the Syrian refugees to the pilgrims that came to America on the Mayflower during an address to the nation on Thanksgiving.
“We don’t make good decisions if it’s based on hysteria and exaggeration of risks”, Obama said. The figure has been criticised by refugee activists who point out that countries such as France and Germany are settling far greater numbers.
In his annual Thanksgiving message to the country, President Barack Obama took the opportunity to sermonize on the plight of Syrian refugees, who, in the weeks since the Paris tragedy, have become a target for Islamophobic and zenophobic hate.
Last Thursday, the US House of Representatives defied a veto threat by Obama and passed Republican-backed legislation that aims to halt the program that would admit 10,000 Syrian refugees to the US over the next year, and intensify pre-admission screening processes.
“We are fortunate that our nation’s location and borders do not put us in the same situation we see in Europe, where boats and rafts full of refugees wash ashore with a significantly diminished ability to track who is arriving or departing”.
How is it decided where refugees will live in the U.S.?
Obama said another woman from Pennsylvania also wrote to him saying, “Money is tight for us in my household”.
Christopher Roederer, a professor of law and director of global programs at the Florida Coastal School of Law, says governors have no authority to refuse the entry of anyone into their states. A New York Times analysis found that 1,854 Syrian refugees have been admitted to the USA since 2012.
According to a Bloomberg poll, 53 percent of Americans oppose the president’s plan to increase the acceptance of Syrian refugees into the United States, while 28 percent support the president’s proposal. “The governors wanted notifications whenever refugees were resettled in their states, as well as access to classified information collected when the refugees were vetted”. The holidays, he said, are important for giving, not just what you get.
Democratic Gov. Peter Shumlin, who is not seeking re-election next year, has been vocal in his call to bring Syrian refugees to Vermont as a humanitarian gesture.
Refugee families are fingerprinted and undergo a security screening that involves four USA agencies including the National Counterterrorism Center, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Department of Homeland Security and State Department.
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While some states have claimed they would not accept Syrian refugees, it is actually the US Department of State that grants asylum to refugees in the country.
