Still Frozen Out

 “Solidarity must go beyond words…becoming a refugee is never a choice, but how we respond is.” –United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres

Today is World Refugee Day. Matt Soerens, Vice President of Advocacy and Policy at World Relief, reminds us that there are over 120 million people in the world seeking refuge, defined as a pursuing safe shelter from danger or trouble. These people have fled from their homes because of war, persecution, disaster or political upheaval. In the past, the United States has been a refuge for these people, but since the president signed an Executive Order freezing all refugee resettlement for 90 days, 128,000 people already approved and ready for resettlement have been stuck in limbo. That was on January 20, 2025. It has been more than 90 days, and the freeze is still in effect. According to a report by Religious News Service, the administration has claimed in court that it cannot resettle refugees. However, in May, the administration fast-tracked the resettlement of 59 white Afrikaners from South Africa who, it claimed, were being persecuted because of their race.

And the 128,000 people who have been waiting in line–some for years–are still frozen out.

On this day, we can respond by respectfully urging our U.S. Representative and U.S. Senators to demand that President Trump end the freeze and restore the U.S. refugee resettlement program and funding fully. Phone numbers can be found at https://.5calls.org.

And we can respond by supporting organizations like Refugee One and World Relief, who continue to support refugees who arrived prior to the freeze without the help of federal funding.