WASHINGTON, D.C. — This week, after severely cutting our national refugee resettlement programs, the Trump Administration ordered the immediate pause of a successful refugee resettlement program that allows private U.S. citizens to sponsor refugees. The Welcome Corps is one of the safest and most vetted ways for our neighbors to support new arrivals, and the program has facilitated the arrival of more than 75,000 refugees since its inception in 2023.
This program’s pause is part of a broader pattern of dismantling legal pathways, and will have serious consequences for those who have already been vetted and are seeking safety and stability. Under this new order, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) may terminate refugee status and deny green cards, even for those who previously met requirements. Additionally, there is no process for appeals except for contesting rulings inside immigration courts—courtrooms that are increasingly staged to be deportation traps regardless of defendants’ immigration status or their right to due process.
Said Nicole Melaku, NPNA executive director, “After gutting our refugee resettlement programs, it’s clear that the Trump Administration is systematically targeting refugees admitted under the previous administration, maliciously, to funnel more individuals into the deportation pipeline. Refugees are already the most vetted group of immigrants who enter the United States. There is no legitimate reason for halting resettlement programs, increasing application scrutiny, severely decreasing refugee admissions, or the continued, cruel misuse of USCIS resources.
“To erase immigrants from our communities, this administration is culling any and all legal avenues for refugee resettlement. The grave and ongoing misuse of USCIS funds to feed the administration’s deportation machine betrays American values, disrupts our nation’s longstanding welcoming efforts, and abdicates our role as a global leader. With the most resourced immigration system in the world, we have a responsibility to lead on welcoming, belonging, and integration—not to sabotage it.”
Said Faitima Saidi, We Are All America director, “As an Afghan asylee, I know what it means to flee danger, to rebuild from nothing, and to hold onto the fragile hope that America can be a place of safety. This order shatters that hope for thousands of refugee families. People who have already survived war, persecution, and displacement are now being told that even here, their future is uncertain and their protection can be taken away. No one who escaped violence should have to fear losing their home all over again. We must stand with refugees now, not only to defend their legal rights, but also their belief that safety is still possible in this country.”
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The National Partnership for New Americans (NPNA) is a multi-ethnic, multiracial coalition of 86 of the nation’s largest immigrant and refugee rights organizations with reach across over 42 states. Together with our members, we advance immigrant and refugee equity and inclusion, build and expand immigration legal services and integration programming capacity, and drive campaigns that strengthen democracy through increased civic participation. See our website for more information at partnershipfornewamericans.org.
We Are All America works to uphold and strengthen our nation’s commitment to welcome and protect those seeking freedom, safety and refuge in the United States. We organize people across religious and cultural differences to build inclusive communities where we all belong. See our website for more information at weareallus.org
