In Kentucky, Trump order ‘devastating’ to local refugees

LOUISVILLE, Ky. — President Trump on Friday signed an executive order for “extreme vetting” measures aimed at temporarily halting the flow of refugees, a move that was met with dismay and anxiety in Louisville’s large refugee community, whose growth stood to be sharply curtailed.

It included a 120-day pause on all refugees admissions and a temporary ban impacting citizens from the majority-Muslim nations of Syria, Iran, Iraq, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, and Yemen until it can be determined which countries harbor the greatest threat, the Washington Post reported. Refugees from Syria, in particular, were suspended until further notice.

“I am establishing new vetting measures to keep radical Islamic terrorists out of the United States,” Trump said.

The move reverberated Friday in Louisville and Kentucky. Since 2011, the state has resettled about 4,028 refugees from Iraq, Somalia, Sudan, Iran and Syria, according to the Kentucky Office for Refugees. Among all refugees, Kentucky last year took in more than double the national average of refugees per 100,000 residents. Louisville has large Iraqi and Somali communities.

At the Masjid Bilal Islamic Center in West Louisville Friday afternoon, dozens of refugees from Somalia, Syria and Iraq gathered for prayers. They said many were now cut off from ailing or impoverished family members who were trying to join them in the U.S., and some worried about what some called an atmosphere of “Islamophobia.” Advocates were organizing rallies of support.

Trump's executive order suspends the entry of Syrian refugees into U.S.

"It is devastating," said Abanur Saidi, chairman of the mosque who also works with refugees for Catholic Charities and who is among thousands of Somalis in the Louisville region. "These are people that don't have anything to do with terrorism. They are victims of terror, that's why they are leaving their country."

The state’s nearly 450 Syrian refugees, who became the face of a larger debate about refugees and terrorism, have similar worries about being cut off from family members in refugee camps and scraping by in cities in Jordan, Lebanon and Turkey. The war in Syria has killed more than 400,000 and forced more than 11 million people from their homes, fueling a massive refugee crisis is the Middle East and Europe.

Last year, the Obama administration ramped up resettlements of Syrians to nearly 13,000, after taking little more than 1,800 from 2012 to 2015. Despite the increase, that’s relatively few compared with countries like Germany and Canada.

Advocates argue that fears of inadequate vetting and deadly terrorism in the U.S. from such refugees is overblown. The U.S. State Department has said that refugee screening takes up to 12 to 18 months and is among the strictest for any immigrant. A recent study by a University of North Carolina-Charlotte professor found that attacks by Muslims accounted for only one-third of 1% of all murders in America last year.

Others said they worried the new Trump directive would be counter-productive.

“This policy seems to be directed at the Muslims — and I’m really concerned that this decision will strengthen terrorists and extremist groups, they will have more material to brainwash people that America is against Islam,” Mohammad Babar, a Muslim leader in Louisville.

On Friday, those at the Bilal mosque were signing a petition organized by a coalition of refugee groups seeking to get 10,000 signatures before a planned rally next month in Frankfort. Leaders are urging supporters to write letters to legislators. Meantime, the Louisville Muslim Community and a coalition of groups said they would host an event Saturday to highlight the importance of dialogue and consider grassroots actions in the face of what they called "increasing Islamaphobia" and other issues.

Also Saturday, a “We Welcome Refugees” gathering was being planned by the Episcopal Diocese of Kentucky at Church of the Advent. They planned to walk down the street to Kentucky Refugee Ministries' offices in a show of support, according to a Facebook post.

“Our president is trying to divide us,” said Farhan Abdi, executive director of Muslim Americans for Compassion. He said refugees and immigrants are “doctors, teachers, lawyers, business owners, factory workers" who will "keep fighting to keep America welcoming.”

During the last budget year, the U.S. accepted 84,995 refugees, including 12,587 people from Syria. President Obama had set the refugee limit for this budget year at 110,000.

Trump, according to a draft order, planned to cut that program by more half to 50,000. The draft order said while the program is suspended, the U.S. may admit people on a case-by-case basis "when in the national interest" and the government would continue to process refugee requests from people claiming religious persecution, "provided that the religion ... is a minority religion in the individual's country." That suggests that would allow the admission of Christians from Muslim-majority countries, according to the AP.

Wenda Fischer is a church volunteer who has helped many Syrian families settle into apartments provided by groups like Catholic Charities and Kentucky Refugee Ministries, who also help them find jobs and learn English. She recalled refugee programs shutting down for a time after the 9/11 terror attacks and hoped that this, too, would pass.

“Having lived through that, hopefully, it’s cyclical and the pendulum is going to swing back eventually,” she said. “The minute Trump was elected ... I knew it was going to be an uphill battle. So I’m sort of resigned.”