Since the capture of Kabul by the Taliban on August 16, 2021, the American authorities have repatriated 76,000 Afghans. They spent a few months in military camps spread across the United States, time to check their backgrounds and their rights to settle in the country, then in mid-November, the distribution in 46 states began. California received the largest number, followed by Texas which will welcome nearly 4,300. Specifically, there are 2,286 Afghan refugees who are already there and nearly 2,000 have yet to arrive.
Faced with this sudden influx of refugees, organizations are struggling to cope. The four associations that took care and still take care of Afghan refugees in Texas had not experienced such a wave of arrivals over such a short period for a long time. To some, it resembles the massive influx of Vietnamese boat people in the 1970s and 1980s. “There is no organization that can do it alone, no chance”worries Ali Al Sudani, a former refugee from Iraq, who is now the program manager at Interfaith Ministries in Houston.
“In 2021, we received only 140 refugees in the whole year. And suddenly, we receive 400 in one month.”
Ali Al Sudani, program manager at Interfaith Ministries in Houston
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Mohammad Nikzad had to leave his mother and sisters in the country and is afraid for them: “I hope I have a good future here in the United States. You know, we had to leave the place where we grew up and we are really sad”.
Abdul Salam lost both his legs while working for the US military in Afghanistan. He has just had his children vaccinated so that they can go to school and says he is very happy to be here. “We were so luckysays Abdul Salam, but more than a thousand Afghan refugees will still come. It is a problem. Organizations want to solve it as soon as possible, but it is difficult to find apartments quickly”. And with no permanent address, no job, no driver’s license, no children in school. However, finding accommodation for 400 people each week is a real challenge.
Moreover, some, like former President Donald Trump two weeks ago in Conroe, north of Houston, are trying to stigmatize these refugees. “The administration is overwhelming our communities with even more refugees from Afghanistan. They are unchecked and we don’t know their intentions. They will live in a house next to yours, and you won’t even know not made aware. Only a tiny minority have really helped the United Stateshe said. Only 3% really have the right to be here.” But this fear is not shared in Houston, which prides itself on being one of the most diverse cities in the country. Even among the most Republican, there is a mixture of charity and debt because these Afghan refugees helped the American troops in their country which they had to leave for fear for their lives.
So ultra-evangelical churches donate, synagogues help relocate them, and refugee aid organizations get a lot of support.“Houston really is a very welcoming cityconfirms Dario Liopvac who works at YMCA International Services. Everyone comes to us and asks how they can help. We have established long-standing relationships with apartment owners. They are very effective and allow us to get by.”
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