MINNEAPOLIS -- President-elect Joe Biden has pledged to bring back America's welcoming approach toward immigrants and refugees. One Minnesota group says that's restored hope in getting more people resettled, but cautions that patience is needed.

The cap on refugee admissions declined every year during Donald Trump's presidency, to a record low of 15,000 for 2021. Biden has said he wants to boost the number to 125,000.

Micaela Schuneman, refugee services director for the International Institute of Minnesota said that would even be above the historical average prior to Trump's term, but she said any changes wouldn't happen overnight.

"Because of a lot of the administrative changes that happened, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service is going to have to hire more staff," she said. "They're gonna have to get back to processing cases at the level that they were processed before."

She said it could take up to a couple years to see higher numbers of refugees after the changes are reversed. A number of resettlement agencies that work with the federal government scaled back their operations when the Trump administration downsized the program. In the last fiscal year, the Institute brought 109 new residents from other countries to Minnesota, down from more than 500 in the final year of the Obama administration.

While the executive branch gets to set the refugee cap, Congress has to authorize funding for that level. Schuneman said that's why it's important to get the backing of lawmakers as well. She noted that, historically, there's been bipartisan support on Capitol Hill -- but the last four years have been difficult for the people they're trying to help.

"We saw quite a few family members, of course, who were very distraught, very sad, when we'd have to call them and tell them a case had been delayed," she said.

Schuneman also said clients were a little more reluctant to speak openly about their own case or a family member's, given some of the heated rhetoric in recent years. Outside of restoring the resettlement infrastructure, those involved estimate a backlog of 120,000 refugees who are waiting in the wings.


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CHICAGO -- Advocates for immigrants and refugees in Illinois traveled to Washington, D.C., this week to push for a pathway to citizenship for up to eight million undocumented immigrants.

They asserted they will not stop fighting for comprehensive immigration reform, despite the Senate parliamentarian's decision, which stated current rules do not allow the proposal to be included in the budget reconciliation package in Congress.

Omar Awadh, community organizer for Arab American Family Services in Chicago, who is a Temporary Protected Status holder, said there is no time to waste.

"The different communities, undocumented communities have been living in fear, with the harassment from ICE," Awadh observed. "They fear that their families will be broken, they will be separated from their families, they are going to be separated from their livelihoods."

In recent polling, 65% of Americans think undocumented immigrants should be allowed to stay in the U.S. and eventually apply for citizenship. More than 80% said they support citizenship for recipients of DACA, the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program.

The citizenship proposal in the budget reconciliation package applied to those Dreamers, farmworkers, essential workers and people with Temporary Protected Status.

Awadh hopes to see all undocumented residents have the opportunity to become citizens, especially since members of Congress and the President committed to immigration reform in their election campaigns.

"We will not accept the fact that using us as pawns for the campaigns, talking about citizenship, and then forget about us," Awadh asserted. "They must hold themselves accountable."

The push for immigration reform comes as resettlement agencies in Illinois are working to support Afghan refugees beginning to arrive to the state. Chicago alone is expected to become home to more than 500 people fleeing the Taliban in Afghanistan.

FARGO, N.D. -- In the near future, North Dakota is poised to help resettle 49 Afghan evacuees who fled their home country after the U.S. military exit, and those assisting in the effort, along with human rights advocates, call on local leaders and residents to fully welcome the new immigrants.

A recent announcement came after North Dakota's resettlement office request for that number was approved by the U.S. State Department.

Dan Hannaher, field director of the Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service, said the response has been positive so far, especially from the business community willing to hire new arrivals.

"I heard from an employer saying, 'If you're receiving 49 Afghans, if 40 of them are employable, I'll take them all,'" Hannaher reported.

Most refugees are likely to be resettled in Fargo, and Hannaher said the area has enough affordable housing. Advocates asked the public to do its part to quell any hateful rhetoric that may arise, while offering a welcoming tone.

State officials say the individuals in the program go through a rigorous vetting process, and will be vaccinated against COVID.

Darci Asche, a board member of the New American Consortium for Wellness and Empowerment, which also will assist with resettlement, said the combination of compassion and services can help refugees establish roots and be contributors to the area.

She added in this situation, the trauma they experienced will be fresh in their minds as they were sent to the U.S. more quickly than usual to be vetted.

"Just being conscientious of that," Asche advised. "The services that we provided are culturally appropriate, that there's language ability, so that communication is done well."

Barry Nelson, community organizer for the North Dakota Human Rights Coalition, urged local leaders and community members to educate each other about the refugees and their needs.

He feels there is already misinformation floating around, and he noted Fargo's new hate-crime ordinance should be utilized if needed.

"Make sure that everything that needs to be done to eradicate it," Nelson stated. "To perhaps prosecute if needed, if it rises to that level would happen."

State officials pointed out the resettlement program is federally funded, and the effort does not impact social services currently available to North Dakotans in need.

MADISON, Wis. - A Wisconsin military base remains the temporary home of nearly 8,000 Afghan refugees, and it isn't the first time the state has seen an influx of evacuees trying to carve out a new life.

Prominent Hmong leaders have said their people have made significant contributions after arriving in Wisconsin under similar circumstances. In the decades after the Vietnam War, Wisconsin's Hmong population rose to become the third-highest in the nation. The leaders have noted that, when given the opportunity, they found ways to assimilate and make contributions.

Pao Lor, a professor at the University of Wisconsin Green Bay who chairs its Professional Program in Education, said it became pretty clear over time.

"Particularly in the 90s, Hmong American families started buying homes, and getting better jobs," he said, "and basically, the life in northeast Wisconsin almost transformed, you could say, overnight."

While there were challenges along the way, those who stepped into larger roles served as culture brokers, giving Hmong communities a bigger voice. Today, there are calls for giving Afghan refugees the chance to set a similar path, with support and aid. Some GOP members of Wisconsin's congressional delegation have raised safety concerns, but advocates have said these refugees have been vetted, and many worked for the U.S. during the war in Afghanistan.

Mai Zong Vue, an administrator at the Wisconsin Department of Children and Families, said Hmong families have set down roots in many cities, including Milwaukee, Wausau and Eau Claire. She added that contributions will continue to come from future generations who were born here.

"Our future American taxpayers can only be as productive as what we seek for them in knowledge, in experience, in opportunities," she said.

Vue, who also is board president of Wisconsin's Hmong Institute, said preserving cultural heritage is a key part of shaping these descendents' futures, which can help give them a sense of identity. Both Vue and Lor expressed their thoughts at a recent panel discussion led by the Wisconsin Historical Society.