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RefugePoint Responds to Historically Low Cap on Refugees
On Tuesday, we learned that the Trump Administration intends limit the number of refugees admitted to the U.S. to 45,000 for the 2018 fiscal year. This represents the lowest admissions goal since 1980. By comparison, the 2017 limit allowed for 110,000 refugees. RefugePoint is profoundly disappointed that in this time of great need, with more than 22.5 million…
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Unaccompanied Minors Greatly Impacted by Suspension of the U.S. Resettlement Program
Child protection is extremely important to the work and mission of RefugePoint. We currently have seven Child Protection Experts located in six countries across Africa. Children face extreme risks as refugees and are often subject to exploitation and dangerous living conditions. Additionally, unaccompanied and orphaned minors often have little or no access to education or…
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One of the Last Unaccompanied Minors to Arrive in the U.S. Before the Travel Ban
Musa*, age 11, was among the last unaccompanied minors to arrive in the U.S. before the suspension of the U.S. refugee resettlement program, and was certainly one of the last to arrive from such a life-threatening situation. At age 8, Musa was chased from his home in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and was…
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All In a Day’s (Social) Work
Integral to RefugePoint’s holistic service model in our Urban Refugee Protection Program (URPP) is our Social Work team, comprised of four Social Workers, a Program Associate, an Education Officer, a Child Protection Officer, and a Program Manager. Often, a Social Worker is one of the very first staff members that a new client will interact with.…
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RefugePoint’s Statement regarding the Administration’s interpretation of the Supreme Court’s ruling on Executive Order 13780
There are more refugees in more life threatening situations than ever before. Conflict and persecution have forced more than 65 million people from their homes, including 22.5 million refugees who have crossed an international border. The Supreme Court ruled on June 26th to uphold parts of President Trump’s Executive Order 13780, and suspends travel for refugees who…
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RefugePoint Statement on Supreme Court Announcement
The June 26th Supreme Court decision upholds parts of President Trump’s Executive Order and suspends travel for refugees who “lack any bona fide relationship with a person or entity in the United States.” This is a potentially devastating blow to refugees and goes against our American values of welcome. RefugePoint was founded to help refugees in life-threatening…
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World Refugee Day Celebrations 2017
Urban Refugee Protection Network (URPN) Partners, convened by UNHCR, planned a week-long event leading up to June 20, to mark this year’s World Refugee Day. Activities included exhibitions by refugees, entertainment sets, fashion shows and the launch of an online marketplace called Pamoja Collectives. The event was held in the heart of Nairobi at the Alliance Francaise.…
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RefugePoint highlighted in Women’s Refugee Commission report
In a recent report by the Women’s Refugee Commission, RefugePoint is cited as one of a handful of organizations that effectively provides livelihood support to urban refugees. RefugePoint identifies refugees through our urban protection program and offers people life-stabilizing support. The innovative nature of our programs is illustrated in the report by refugees who, when…
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Part Five: Stories of Refugees Impacted by the Executive Order
“Tesfaye* and his family, including his wife and six children, are refugees in Kenya. Tesfaye has been a refugee for 20 years, having escaped persecution in his home country of Ethiopia. In December 2016, the family was elated to be informed that their resettlement case processing was finally coming to an end and that they…
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Part Four: After a 2-year separation, 4-year-old reunites with mother
(Image left: 4-year old Mushkaad is finally reunited with her mother Samira in the U.S., after two years of separation. Image right: RefugePoint Kenya board member Sheikha Ali serves as a travel companion for Mushkaad during her journey from Uganda to the U.S.) “How do you explain to the little girl that she will no…