Chittenden County could once again welcome refugees in the coming weeks.
Flights for families and individuals set to be resettled in the U.S. are being booked despite the executive order that President Donald Trump signed on January 27, a U.S. Committee for Refugees and Immigrants official told Seven Days on Sunday. The order bars entry into the U.S. for all refugees and for nationals from seven majority-Muslim countries. On Friday, U.S. District Judge James Robart issued a temporary order in Seattle that lifted the ban nationwide.
“Rebookings are happening for families and individuals planned to arrive across the country,” USCRI director of government and community relations Stacie Blake wrote in an email. “While those to be rebooked do include Syrians, none of them had been headed to Rutland.”
“We are looking forward to welcoming the families who are scheduled to arrive in Chittenden County in the next couple of weeks,” she continued.
Blake said she doesn’t know how soon the families will arrive. Such information will not be shared in order to protect their privacy, she added.
She also wrote:
To us, every number is a person and a life saved. It is difficult to imagine the turmoil and confusion the families have experienced the past several days to have hopes dashed and then rekindled. We look forward to returning to the stable, safe and orderly resettlement system the U.S. has used for decades.
Trump’s executive order prompted rallies and protests across the country, including in Burlington. The State Department said it had revoked up to 60,000 visas of nationals from the affected countries.
The legal battle over Trump’s order is expected to continue.
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As the late author of the Polity of Beasts wrote in one of his journals, “Today’s ‘progressivism’ is actually the reverse of what it pretends to be, it is retrograde, a loss of the belief in the value of one’s culture and civilization and therefore an indifference to protecting it: it is ultimately a form of self-hatred, of national suicide, and can only lead to one thing—Sharia law!”
There was also a sizable rally in support of refugees and immigration in Winooski on 2/4. It would be nice to mention that in this article (not just Burlington), as Winooski is also home to many of our New Americans, and speakers at the rally included the mayor, a school board member, and the state representative for Winooski, as well as many of our New American neighbors.
I have heard that between 400 and 500 people attended the Winooski rally. The group included many refuggees, many young professionals who live in Winooski, a group of wWnooski official, a smattering of long-time Winooski residents and a few who crossed the bridge from Burlington. Hundreds of cars driving by honked in agreement with the “protesters.” If you want to live in a real-world community, Winooski is your place.
This is soooo wrong..lets take care of our homeless first..Guess who’s going to get a place to live before the homeless..guess who’s going to get a job before a out of work Vermonter, guess who will get free, housing, free health care, food stamps, free clothing, free furniture, and a car…not the homeless Veteran, Not the family with children, not the elderly..Our Pres Trump, yes he’s your President no matter what you say, only put a 90 days ban on refugees to be better Vetted ..but hey you liberals want them so bad invite them to move in with you and put the taxpayers money to better use..