Credit: Rescue.org
Great to see the Administration push back against the Governor Fail on Refugees.
On Wednesday President Obama stepped up to counter the Republican campaign to widen its use of wedge issues of racism, hate and anti-immigrant sentiments to pull in fringe voters.
http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/president-obama-compares-syrian-refugees-mayflower-pilgrims-states/story?id=35431907
President Obama Compares Syrian Refugees to Mayflower Pilgrims, Administration Says States Can't Block Them
President Obama used his weekly address to appeal to families counting their blessings on Thanksgiving, reminding Americans that the holiday isn’t only about turkey but a tribute to the deep immigration history that led to the nation’s founding.
“In 1620, a small band of pilgrims came to this continent, refugees who had fled persecution and violence in their native land,” Obama says. “Nearly 400 years later, we remember their part in the American story – and we honor the men and women who helped them in their time of need.”
The Obama administration said Wednesday that states can't legally block the resettlement of refugees, according to a letter from the HHS Office of Refugee Resettlement sent to state officials.
In the letter, the agency said states are bound by the Refugee Act of 1980 to provide "assistance and services" to refugees "without regard to race, religion, nationality, sex or political opinion," and cannot cut off ORR-funded services to Syrian refugees.
Additionally, the letter says refugees are protected by Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which "prohibits discrimination on the bases of race and national origin" in all programs that receive federal financial assistance.
More than 30 state governors have indicated they will attempt to block any future refugees from settling in their states.
Obama said he’s been “touched by the generosity of the Americans” who have written letters and emails in recent weeks offering to open their homes to refugees fleeing the Islamic State, ISIL.
“Nearly four centuries after the Mayflower set sail, the world is still full of pilgrims – men and women who want nothing more than the chance for a safer, better future for themselves and their families,” the president says. “What makes America America is that we offer that chance. We turn Lady Liberty’s light to the world, and widen our circle of concern to say that all God’s children are worthy of our compassion and care. That’s part of what makes this the greatest country on Earth.”
Great to see this. Want to take action?
MoveOn has a petition:
http://petitions.moveon.org/sign/tell-republican-governors?source=s.fwd&r_by=13172529
Tell Republican governors: Stop attacking refugees
Petition by Ben Wikler
To be delivered to 29 Republican Governors
Threatening to refuse Syrian refugees entry into our state is playing to baseless racist fears for cheap political gain.
Stop attacking the refugee families who are fleeing the same terrorist groups behind the attacks in Paris, Beirut, and around the world.
There are currently 40,365 signatures. NEW goal - We need 50,000 signatures!
Sign here : http://petitions.moveon.org/sign/tell-republican-governors?source=s.fwd&r_by=13172529