LEXINGTON, Ky. — Experts and people who have experienced being a refugee are discussing how to improve state and federal policy to better support Kentucky's new immigrants. The panel discussion is happening today at the University of Kentucky.

Each year, Kentucky accepts refugees in numbers more than twice the national average. In 2017, more than 1,500 refugees were settled statewide, according to the Kentucky Center for Economic Policy.

Mary Beth McGavarn is a clinical psychologist and associate professor at the University of Kentucky who works with refugees. She said while housing, employment and language are major barriers to getting settled, mental health often is overlooked.

"We more and more think of mental health as an entity, or as a separate thing. And many people that we work with, they connect mental and physical health,” McGavarn said. “So they might not be saying, 'My mental health is impacted,' even though they're talking about grief and loss, but they might be feeling it more in their bodies."

Since 2011, Kentucky has resettled refugees from Iraq, Iran, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, and other war-torn countries. Studies have documented high rates of post-traumatic stress disorder and depression among those fleeing their home countries.

Diane Sumney is an English as a Second Language teacher with Fayette County Schools. In 2008, her elementary school suddenly had an influx of around 80 refugees. Sumney started an after-school program to help children cope with their trauma.

She said on the surface, children can appear to be adjusting. But often they have deep psychological issues from experiencing war that manifest in other ways, such as drawing pictures. She told a story of one such student.

"He started his picture and he kept saying, 'I shouldn't be drawing this. I shouldn't be drawing this,' and he kept moving around, 'I shouldn't be drawing this,' and he was drawing suddenly and frantically,” Sumney said. “This was a kid who was doing well in school, and wasn't having too many problems. Before he had finished that picture, he had scooted somehow under the table at the end of the hallway and was in the corner."

For older children and teenagers, the experience of being helpless or dependent on others can be just as traumatic.

Elisha Mutayonwa arrived in Kentucky as a teenage refugee from the Republic of Congo with his father and six siblings.

"I went to high school here. My first day of high school, they wanted to put me in ninth grade. I was turning 19 then,” Mutayonwa said. “They wanted to put me in ninth grade, so there was no communication between us. They didn't know anything about my background - if I went to school before or anything."

Mutayonwa now is a student at Bluegrass Technical and Community College. He said the biggest change he'd like to see in the resettlement process is allowing refugees to make decisions for themselves.


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Advocates for immigrants are pushing back on a bill signed by Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds in the last few days of the legislative session, modeled on a recent, controversial Texas law.

Senate File 2340 gives local law enforcement officers and judges the authority to deport undocumented immigrants.

Erica Johnson, executive director of the Iowa Migrant Movement for Justice, argued the bill is an overreach, and said Iowa law enforcement officers are not authorized to enforce it.

"This is a pretty clear intervention into federal territory," Johnson pointed out. "U.S. immigration law is governed by federal law."

Much like the author of the Texas bill, supporters in Iowa blame the Biden administration for failing to slow illegal immigration, so the state has decided to take matters into its own hands.

Johnson contended the bill and other anti-immigrant sentiment during the just-completed legislative session target the very people Iowa, with its dwindling population, will depend on for its future workforce.

"What we need is communities that are safe, where workers have access to dignified, safe workplaces," Johnson emphasized. "The truth of what Iowa's future could be depends on immigrants and immigrant workers in our state, and unfortunately, this law could take us back, away from that possible future. "

Johnson added her organization will pursue legal ways to block the bill from taking effect in July.


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The future of Senate Bill 4 is still tangled in court challenges. It's the Texas law that would allow police to arrest people for illegally crossing the border. But groups are speaking out about the impact of "Operation Lone Star" on the youngest migrants. Governor Greg Abbott continues to bus migrant families to other states, many with young children - more than 100,000 families so far.

Robert Sanborn, CEO of Children at Risk, works to improve the quality of life for boys and girls in Texas, and contends the policy has put trauma on top of trauma.

"We never want children to be political pawns. We don't want maximum chaos on the backs of children. We want children to grow up and be assets for our community," he contended.

Sanborn points out that 2.2 million children in Texas are immigrants, and said it would be less stressful for kids if families were not bused in the middle of the night, and if they were allowed to pick their destination.

When immigrants arrive at the border, they are evaluated to determine if they're eligible for asylum.

Beatriz Zavala, clinical coordinator at El Paso-based Humanitarian Outreach for Migrant Emotional Health, or "HOME," said the children in this situation are at higher risk for mental health disorders.

"What is particularly troubling is the profound disregard for the stability and protection these families need. The impact on their mental health is undeniable. These are not just statistics. These are children, real children," she said.

As part of Operation Lone Star, families have been bused to Chicago, Denver, Los Angeles, New York City, Philadelphia and Washington D.C. The governor has said the practice is needed to keep the Texas-Mexico border safe.


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Legislation in Albany would create the first right to counsel for people in immigration court.

The Access to Representation Act would provide immigrants the right to an attorney in their New York immigration cases, ending the tendency to represent themselves if they cannot afford one.

Estimates show a backlog of more than 330,000 immigration court cases, and fewer than half have attorneys. Studies show without legal counsel, migrants are less likely to remain in the U.S.

Marlene Galaz, director of immigrant rights policy for the New York Immigration Coalition, described what the bill would do.

"It has a six-year ramp-up to start implementing and building infrastructure," Galaz outlined. "Having a pipeline between law schools for law students to go into immigration practice, and getting to nonprofits and so on."

Galaz noted most opposition centers around the $150 million to fund the program but pointed out the total expenditure is less than 1% of the state's $229 billion budget. She added anti-immigrant rhetoric has also damaged support for the bill. Currently, it is in the state Senate Finance Committee.

The New York City Comptroller's office said enacting the bill would benefit the state financially. It could keep about 53,000 people from being deported, which would result in almost $8.5 billion in local, state and federal taxes over the next 30 years.

Galaz emphasized the influx of migrants has saturated the court system, leading to what could have been an avoidable backlog.

"I firmly believe that if these investments had been made when we first asked for them, I believe, like, three years ago, then we wouldn't be struggling," Galaz contended. "We would have had the infrastructure built to address an increase in welcoming our newest neighbors."

A Vera Institute survey showed 93% of New Yorkers across party lines and regions support access to attorneys for all people, including those in immigration court, and government-funded attorneys for them.


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