Daily Archives: October 1, 2020

3 posts

The Cry to #FreeBinsar Grows Louder

Over 1,000 faith leaders from forty-three states, including WI, MI, PA, NC, and the District of Columbia sent a letter to Acting Secretary of Homeland Security Chad Wolf, Senior Official Tony Pham, and the U.S. Congress calling for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to “release Binsar [Siahaan] from detention immediately and allow him to proceed with his asylum case.”

Binsar and his wife

Leaders of Diverse Faiths Write #FreeBinsar

1,038 faith leaders sent a letter to Acting Secretary of Homeland Security Chad Wolf, Senior Official Tony Pham, and the U.S. Congress calling for ICE to “release Binsar from detention immediately and allow him to proceed with his asylum case.” They also demand a statement from ICE “clarifying and assuring that it will adhere to its own policies and will not enter houses of worship or other sensitive locations such as hospitals, schools, and public religious ceremonies or demonstrations.”

Another Historically Low Commitment to Refugees

The Trump administration is proposing another historic low refugee admissions goal of 15,000 for FY 2021, according to the administration’s report to Congress. The administration violated U.S. law by not consulting with Congress on its refugee admissions goal before the start of the new fiscal year, and failing to sign a formal refugee admissions goal, also known as a “Presidential Determination” or PD, before the statutory deadline. This means that the resettlement program has ground to a halt, leaving refugees in harm’s way. Each day that resettlement is paused is a matter of life and death for the thousands of refugees waiting to rebuild their lives.