"Dear Mr. President": Advocating for Iraqi refugees

As an advocate with the International Rescue Committee, I work with IRC teams in Iraq, Jordan, Syria, the United States and Europe to move policymakers and the public to help vulnerable Iraqis in the Middle East and America. 

 

For a big chunk of January, I was in Syria, Lebanon, Jordan and Northern Iraq, talking with Iraqis who fled their homes because they were targeted for violence.  They can’t go home, and they're unable to make enough money to get medical care, feed themselves and send their kids to school.

 

Their stories are reflected in a letter to President Obama that I co-drafted and that IRC has signed, along with 43 other leading non-governmental organizations (NGOs). Signers included national NGOs that resettle refugees in America, operational NGOs working in the Middle East to serve Iraqis, and more than 24 religious denominations and faith-based organizations, both Christian and Muslim.

 

We and the other letter signers applauded the President for the commitment he made to desperate Iraqis in his major Iraq speech on February 27th, in which he said that “America has a strategic interest – and a moral responsibility – to “help the millions of displaced Iraqis” and other Iraqis in need.

 

We also stressed that if the President is going to keep his promise to Iraqis and Americans, it is essential for him to develop and implement a complete, long-term humanitarian strategy that includes:

 

- Goals to measure success

- Assistance to Iraqis impacted by the conflict who remain in Iraq, as well as Iraqi refugees and the communities hosting them

- More Iraqi refugees welcomed to the U.S.

- Money to make sure the strategy works

 

Copies of this letter were sent to President Obama, the Secretary of State, the National Security Advisor, members of Congress and the media.  We're proud to have helped write the letter and generate such strong support for it.  This message complements our programs in Iraq, Jordan, Syria and the United States, and is another example of IRC serving people in need, through on-the-ground efforts along with advocacy.

 

Some people may ask, "Why should we bring more people to the United States, and help them overseas, in these tough economic times?"  Well, in good economic times and bad economic times, America has a proud tradition of helping people who have been targeted by violence.  And no matter how bad things are in the U.S., imagine how much worse they are for Iraqi refugees who are unable to return home and unable to survive without a lot of help.

 

You can support our efforts by signing our petition to help Iraqi families and by supporting our work with Iraqis and other refugees around the world.