Global Refugee Crisis | Local Solutions
The Global Refugee Crisis At a Glance
79.5 million people around the world have been forcibly displaced.
26 million of those individuals are refugees; half are children.
4.2 million of those are asylum-seekers.
Less than 1% will ever be resettled.
Acting Locally
Since late 2015 in Westchester County, nearly a dozen public-private partnerships between volunteer groups and two U.S. refugee program resettlement agencies–HIAS and Catholic Charities– have been formed. Roughly 2,000 volunteers have been providing refugees with long term support and effective assistance during their transition to life in the U.S. In 2018, Hearts & Homes for Refugees formed a dynamic group of friends & partners to bring these volunteers and organizations together, a coalition of community sponsor groups, community organizations, educational institutions, Resettlement Agencies, and more. Our group of friends & partners was a way to build on the early welcoming movement to ensure a broad reaching, sustainable welcoming movement throughout the Lower Hudson Valley. Hearts & Homes continues to grow our coalition so that it can be a powerful resource and permanent fixture in throughout the Lower Hudson Valley and beyond.
The Last Four Years
There is an unprecedented global refugee crisis. Yet, over the last four years, the previous Administration intentionally decimated what was once a strong, humanitarian, non-partisan program to offer refuge to the stranger fleeing violence and persecution. We have failed to live up to the ideals and moral principles that make the U.S. a global leader in welcoming and many would argue, we have put our country in peril as a result of these xenophobic driven policies.
The Future of Welcoming
Community Sponsorship Model
The Community Sponsorship Model is a long term solution to the gaps within our current 40-year-old Resettlement Program, long overdue for updates and improvements. It is a public/private partnership between faith and civic communities and U.S. Resettlement Agencies that effectively extends support for refugees to increase their chances of successfully integrating and achieving independence within their placed communities.
Our vision for Westchester County serves as an example and can inspire and guide others to become welcoming communities. Welcoming the stranger seeking refuge is a core value embraced by many Americans. Hearts & Homes for Refugees has been an active proponent of tapping into this and expanding community grassroots support of refugees across the country. The public-private partnership model of community sponsorship is growing in popularity throughout the country and, if shared and adopted, could result in a paradigm shift in the way we welcome and support refugees. We actively engage in networking outside Westchester County to inspire and share our work in the belief that this is how we can welcome more refugees with stronger than ever outcomes as new Americans.
REFUGEES WELCOME!
Hearts & Homes is thrilled to say that we are welcoming AGAIN! We are currently resettling newly arriving Afghans and other refugees in the Lower Hudson Valley. President Biden has officially increased refugee admissions to 125,000 starting in fiscal year 2022, which means we will continue to expand our mission to inspire individuals to be a part of the Community Sponsorship movement where groups can offer long term support and help resettle refugees to build a stronger community.
We believe that empowering communities by engaging people of goodwill and aligning with like-minded community organizations, institutions and infrastructures can shift the paradigm of refugee resettlement in this country for the future. As individuals that are a part of a larger community, we can act locally as solutions to the global crisis.
