U.S COMMITTEE FOR REFUGEES AND IMMIGRANTS
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Join USCRI in the National Refugee Day of Action: Make Your Voice Heard

October 23, 2020

National Refugee Day of Action

Monday, October 26, 2020

Background: The Trump administration has proposed the lowest refugee admissions goal in history — just 15,000 refugees in FY 2021. To make matters worse, the administration is not resettling refugees based on their vulnerability. Instead, the administration’s roadmap for resettlement is based on very restrictive categories of refugee populations. As a result, the United States might not even meet half of its historic low admissions goal of 15,000 this year. 

As the first month of this fiscal year comes to an end, the President has STILL failed to sign a refugee admissions goal for FY 2021, grinding the resettlement program to an indefinite halt. 

Join us for a National Day of Action on Monday, October 26th to call on the administration to restore the refugee admissions program. Our top three actions include a national call-in campaign to Congress, a Twitterstorm targeting the administration, and local media engagement with your hometown outlets. The administration and Members of Congress need to hear that their constituents want the President to sign a refugee admissions goal, expand the categories of refugee populations (called “refugee allocations”), and increase the FY 2021 admissions goal to 95,000 — the historic average. 

TOP 3 WAYS TO TAKE ACTION

NATIONAL CALL-IN DAY 1

TWITTERSTORM ON OCT. 26th @ 12PM ET 2

ENGAGE MEDIA 2

 

NATIONAL CALL-IN DAY

Tell Congress to Pressure the Administration to Restore Refugee Resettlement Program and Welcome Refugees

Click here to contact your 2 Senators and 1 Representative

Sample Email/Script: “I’m your constituent from [CITY/TOWN], and I urge you to protect the refugee resettlement program. I am outraged that President Trump has failed to sign a refugee admissions goal for FY 2021, which has stopped the resettlement program. [As a former refugee from [country], I came to the U.S. in [year], and today I [about your job or community involvement]].

I strongly oppose the proposed new historic low refugee admissions goal of just 15,000 and the very restrictive “refugee allocations” that will make it impossible to meet the FY 2021 admissions goal; under the proposed categories of refugee populations, less than half of the 15,000 could be admitted this year. Please hold the administration accountable to sign a refugee admissions goal for FY 2021, expand the “refugee allocations” to include an “Other” category, and increase the FY 2021 admissions goal to 95,000 – the historic average.

Our country can – and should – safely resettle more refugees and reunite more families. Refugees contribute to this country in many ways in ordinary times, and have continued to show up for their new communities during the COVID-19 crisis. Many refugees are working on the frontlines, including 176,000 serving as healthcare workers and 175,000 working in the food supply chain. My community welcomes refugees, and I urge you to reflect the best of our nation by supporting refugee resettlement.”

After you have contacted your Members of Congress, encourage others to take action by taking to social media. Tag your Members of Congress for extra impact. Access their Twitter handles here. Find sample social  below, or create your own using the hashtags #WeAreWelcomers #Welcome95k.

  • .[@local elected official] show @POTUS that #WeAreWelcomers and sign on to welcomingrefugees2021.org and ensure that we WILL #Welcome95k
  • .[@memberofcongress]: America must remain a country of welcome. Please do your part to see that the administration commits to resettling 95,000 refugees in FY 2021.#Welcome95k #WeAreWelcomers
  • .[@memberofcongress]: Thousands of refugee families are being torn apart because America has closed its doors to them. Please show your support for refugee resettlement. #WeAreWelcomers #Welcome95k

TWITTERSTORM ON OCT. 26th @ 12PM ET

Join Social Media Action Urging the Administration to Welcome Refugees and Immediately Sign a Refugee Admissions Goal of 95,000 for FY 2021

Join allies and partners for a Twitterstorm on Monday, October 26th from 12pm-1pm ET (9am-10am PT) by sharing your support of refugees on social media. You can use the sample posts below to ask your Members of Congress, the administration, and your local elected officials to welcome refugees by increasing and signing the FY2021 PD and expanding allocation categories.

For sample posts and graphics, here is a digital toolkit: http://bit.ly/DigitalToolkitOct26th. 

Using images with your posts can help catch people’s attention on social media. You can find additional unbranded graphics, or create your own. Here are some samples:

  • .@POTUS @SecPompeo you must commit to #Welcome95k #refugees. With no refugee admissions goal, refugees fleeing religious persecution remain in harm’s way. #WeAreWelcomers
  • .@SecPompeo @STATEPRM welcoming fewer than 95,000 refugees in FY21 is an abdication of US leadership in the face of the worst displacement crisis in history #WeAreWelcomers #Welcome95k
  • .@SecPompeo @STATEPRM resettling refugees is a critical component of US foreign policy; we were proud of our leadership in this space and are ready to #Welcome95k
  • .@SecPompeo @STATEPRM numerous organizations agree that welcoming refugees is integral to who we are as Americans https://bit.ly/33iHF9a #Welcome95k #WeAreWelcomers

Make sure to include the twitter handle of your Representative and Senators when possible. A list of twitter handles for Members of Congress is available here.

ENGAGE MEDIA

Write Letters to the Editor and Opinion Pieces for Your Local Media Outlets

If you are looking for a way to continue your advocacy, one of the best ways to make your voice heard is by writing a Letter to the Editor (LTE) or Opinion Editorial (op-ed) for your local paper for publication. Your hometown outlets are especially useful for making your voice heard to officials at the federal, state, and local levels. These efforts are especially needed to show that your community welcomes, and will continue to welcome refugees despite the administration’s efforts to end resettlement. 

You can find sample LTEs and template op-ed’s for you to copy/adapt to your own voice, as well as instructions for pitching & placing in our media toolkit, available here. 

If you would like any help with drafting, pitching, or placing – or identifying reporters or local outlets, please contact [email protected] for help!


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