ACLU, Coalition Urge Congress to Continue Support for US Refugee Resettlement Program

WASHINGTON — The American Civil Liberties Union, along with 80 other groups, sent a letter to Congress voicing support for the U.S. refugee resettlement program and opposing efforts to suspend or undermine it. The coalition includes refugee and immigration legal experts, humanitarian aid organizations, as well as faith, labor, and civil rights groups.

Some federal lawmakers and U.S. governors have moved to restrict the planned resettlement of Syrian refugees to the United States following the Paris attacks. The groups oppose any such effort, saying it would “jeopardize the United States’ moral leadership in the world.” They note that the refugees are the most thoroughly vetted group of people who come to the United States. Read the full letter here.

Karin Johanson, director of the ACLU’s Washington Legislative Office, said:

“Our elected officials should demonstrate leadership by continuing to support the U.S. refugee resettlement program. They should not turn their backs on refugees who are fleeing the type of terror we saw in Paris and elsewhere.”

The letter is at: https://www.aclu.org/letter/sign-letter-congress-re-syrian-refugees-and-us-refugee-resettlement-program