Oxfam reaction to presidential determination on refugees

“With the lives of tens of thousands of people on the line, the reported refugee resettlement goal is simply insufficient to meet the vast scale of global need. While the goal of welcoming up to 125,000 people fulfills a promise made by President Biden on the campaign trail -- and reaffirmed in May -- it no longer meets the urgency and need of the current moment. The wealthiest nation on Earth absolutely has the capacity and resources to make a bolder commitment that upholds the full potential of this nation’s promise.

“The shocking images of the degrading treatment of Haitian asylum seekers today at the border only underscore the reality that the lives of millions of people remain on the line as the global displacement crisis continues to worsen. This goal is not appropriate while people are left out in the cold and newly-displaced families, particularly those in Afghanistan who continue to search for safe avenues to flee, find themselves suddenly seeking immediate protection.

“Given today’s scale of global need, Oxfam has called on President Biden to welcome as many as 200,000 people this coming fiscal year. Oxfam will continue to push the Biden administration to increase the number of refugees welcomed by the US and to rebuild a refugee resettlement infrastructure intentionally decimated under the previous administration.

“The presidential determination is one tool for the US to uphold its global responsibility and President Biden’s administration must also seek the long-term political and diplomatic solutions that thoughtfully and adequately meet refugee resettlement needs around the world. 

“The US has a moral obligation to lead in these efforts, to do more, and to live up to its promise as a welcoming nation that opens its doors to the most vulnerable among us, both through refugee resettlement as well as at the border.”