Afghan families and friends turn to North Bay congressional offices for help for refugees

August 23, 2021

Local congressional offices say they have received dozens of requests to help Afghan refugees left stranded by the chaos now entering its second week in their home country.

U.S. Reps. Mike Thompson, D-St. Helena, and Jared Huffman, D-San Rafael, said their offices are working to secure Special Immigration Visas for interpreters, medical personnel and others who served the U.S. government during the war in Afghanistan.

Meanwhile, Bay Area nonprofit organizations are preparing to help refugees resettle once they arrive in the U.S., according to a spokesperson for the Northern California International Rescue Committee.

Monday marked 10 days since the Taliban swept into the Afghan capital of Kabul. Over the next several days, scenes of desperate refugees swarming the U.S. Embassy and Hamid Karzai International Airport to escape the Taliban.

On Monday, President Joe Biden said 28,000 people have been airlifted from Kabul. U.S., German and Afghan guards fended off an attack that killed one Afghan guard outside the Kabul airport by unidentified gunmen on Monday. The day before, gunfire broke out near an airport entrance and at least seven Afghans died in a stampede of thousands of people. At least seven others died in other incidents.

As the death toll increases, tens of thousands of people were still waiting to flee, despite slowed evacuation due to security issues and U.S. bureaucratic hurdles.

Around the U.S., Congressional offices have been inundated with Afghan families and allies who are desperate to get their relatives and friends out of the country.

The office of Rep. Mike Thompson, D-St. Helena, is working on 13 cases assisting community members who’ve asked for help securing SIVs for individuals trying to leave Afghanistan, said Melanie Rhinehart Van Tassell, Thompson’s chief of staff.

Tassell said the cases involve:

  • U.S. citizens trying to bring their Afghan family members to the U.S.
  • A member of the U.S. military who worked in Afghanistan and is attempting to aid Afghanistan allies who assisted his mission.
  • Someone requesting assistance for a friend who was planning on coming to the U.S. to attend college but now needs assistance leaving all together.
  • An individual has requested assistance for vulnerable female athletes from Afghanistan who defied the Taliban’s strict gender norms by participating in sports.

Most of the requests involved assistance for multiple people, but due to privacy reasons the Van Tassell said she could not provide more details.

Rep. Jared Huffman, D-San Rafael, is working on dozens of Special Immigration Visas for hundreds of people, according to a statement from his office.

“It’s a very fluid situation and we are working around the clock to provide information and resources to people trying to evacuate,” the statement said. “The situation in Kabul is dangerous and chaotic, with multiple reports of violence and unsuccessful attempts to get into the airport, and we will continue working to help as many people as possible.”

Even if an Afghan refugee is granted an SIV, that’s just the start of their journey.

They still have to make their way to the airport through a dangerous gantlet of Taliban fighters and then secure a seat on a flight.

If they eventually do arrive in the United States, they will need short-term housing, employment and eventually long-term housing.

They will still face other obstacles like lack of employment and credit histories, language barriers and more, said Michael Magnaye, Development Director for the International Rescue Committee in Northern California.

The International Rescue Committee’s Soft Landing Fund helps provide a bridge to SIV holders by giving them money for housing and other needs while they seek their first job.

“Each family gets about $1,125 per person, but that can only goes so far in the Bay Area,” Magnaye said.

They hope that more donations to the fund will help cover emergency temporary housing and rental and utility assistance to help stabilize evacuees.

The program has yet to receive any new arrivals from Afghanistan, but are doing their best to prepare, he said. The committee is still receiving new arrivals from four to five years ago who are just now being processed after the Trump administration placed bans and barriers on Islamic refugees in 2017.

“Afghan refugees who resettle here will become part of our community and an asset to our community, so we really have to welcome them,” Magnaye said.


By:  Alana Minkler
Source: The Press Democrat