Local News
Executive order to halt refugee resettlement activities in Rochester

Rochester, New York – On Thursday, a Rochester-based immigrant resettlement advocate described the impact of a recent executive order that essentially stopped refugee admissions to the US.
The future of refugee resettlement operations in Rochester is unknown as a result of President Donald Trump’s executive order essentially suspending the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program.
Getachew Beshir, who has been working with Catholic Charities Family and Community Services to help refugees, voiced worries about how the executive order might affect the people they help.
“As an immigrant myself, after having an education here, I wanted to help those coming here,” Beshir stated. The organization offers refugees vital services like job support, legal aid, and health care coordination.
Beshir described the difficult procedures that refugees must go through in order to enter the United States.
“They are the safest to come to the U.S.,” he stated. “It typically takes two years to complete the process before traveling to the United States. The federal government permits them to enter the United States after they have passed security, medical, and other screenings.
In February, over 60 people from Afghanistan, Syria, and the Congo were scheduled to be welcomed by Catholic Charities’ refugee, immigration, and job department.
However, flights to Rochester were canceled as a result of the executive order.
“One of our clients is from Kenya. He has a wife and six kids, and he moved to Rochester after spending 30 years in a refugee camp,” Beshir stated. “But now definitely we don’t see the possibility of his family coming and joining him.”
According to the executive order, the US cannot take in a lot of migrants and refugees without jeopardizing its resources and security.
Nonetheless, it has a clause that permits the Secretary of Homeland Security and the Secretary of State to admit refugees on an individual basis.
“When we say stopping refugees is not American, because, from the beginning, these refugees and immigrants were allowed and have been part of the country, the country’s fabric,” Beshir stated. “To stop this kind of work that has so many benefits, it is disheartening.”
The executive order will be reassessed 90 days after it goes into force, which is this coming Monday. After then, the president will decide whether to keep it going or not.
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