EDITORIAL: Refugee conversation must be civilized and based only on facts

Posted 4/7/16

Wyoming is the only state that does not participate in the program now. But increasing global instances of terrorism have sparked greater concern about allowing refugees into the country and into our state. When Gov. Matt Mead indicated in 2013 that …

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EDITORIAL: Refugee conversation must be civilized and based only on facts

Posted

A discussion last month about the possibility of Wyoming participating in the federal Refugee Resettlement Program was a good step in the right direction.

Wyoming is the only state that does not participate in the program now. But increasing global instances of terrorism have sparked greater concern about allowing refugees into the country and into our state. When Gov. Matt Mead indicated in 2013 that he wanted to begin discussions with the federal government about state participation in the refugee program, it raised eyebrows among some Wyoming residents and tempers among others.

The March 29 discussion took place at the Heart Mountain Interpretive Center and was televised on Wyoming PBS. It aimed at explaining who refugees are and how the Refugee Resettlement Program works, and at examining issues surrounding state participation in the program.

Panelists were Bertine Bahige, a former Congolese child soldier and refugee who now is a teacher in Gillette; Wyoming Rep. Tom Reeder, R-Casper; Suzan Pritchett, a law professor at the University of Wyoming and co-director of UW’s Center for International Human Rights Law and Advocacy; and former U.S. Sen. Al Simpson of Cody. 

As each of the panelists noted, there are questions that need to be answered before Wyoming should participate in the program.

Simpson said the program needs to be re-examined and updated in light of new threats to global security. He said some refugees remain on support through the program for 20 years or more, and that also needs to be fixed.

Reeder sponsored a bill during this year’s Legislature that would have specified that the Legislature, not the governor, would be the governing body to make decisions on state participation in the Refugee Resettlement Program.

While we agree that public input would be valuable, we also believe it’s important that any discussion about participating in the program should remain civil and focused on the facts and genuine issues, rather than degenerating to fear mongering or racial slurs.

Those facts include:

• Under the program, a refugee is defined as someone who can prove he or she is in real and immediate danger from a specific person or group, forcing them to flee their country.

• It takes years for someone to make it through the Refugee Resettlement Program, and less than 1 percent of applicants are accepted. Once approved, refugees are assigned a place of residence rather than choosing where they will live. Pritchett said she believes the Refugee Resettlement Program is the least likely way a terrorist would choose to enter the United States, as it is the most difficult and time consuming.

• If Wyoming chose to participate in the program, it’s likely the number of refugees assigned to the state would be very small, as they would need sponsors as well as jobs, public transportation and other amenities that could be provided only in the state’s larger communities.

• Even if Wyoming does not participate in the Refugee Resettlement Program, it is possible for refugees to enter the state after their resettlement, as Bahige did when he began his college education through a scholarship at the University of Wyoming.

Bahige now teaches high school math in Gillette and was named teacher of the year in Campbell County. He remained on the Refugee Resettlement Program for only three months before becoming independent.

Bahige said he believes he can provide inspiration for students who are struggling. “If I can do it, you can, too!” he tells them.

“I love Wyoming,” Bahige told the audience. “It gave me a home. It gave me hope for my children.”

But, since going public with his story, Bahige said he also has gotten death threats, and someone emailed his school superintendent to say that Bahige should be run out of town.

We, like Bahige, believe it’s time to begin this conversation. And, like Bahige, we ask that it be honest and civilized.

“Let’s talk about fact,” he said, “because what I get on Facebook and email has nothing to do with fact.”

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