The Biden administration announced that beginning with the new fiscal year on October 1, the U.S. will raise its refugee admissions to 125,000.
It’s a goal that the Biden administration had established as far back as April, as the president seeks to overturn another Trump-era immigration policy. But is Biden reversing the policy because it was Trump’s?
The plight of refugees around the world has gotten worse over the past year. Their numbers have increased due largely to war and man-made famines. Coupled with the pandemic, the wisdom of allowing so many unvaccinated people into the United States needs to be questioned.
“I applaud the Biden Administration for setting a target of 125,000 refugee admissions in the next fiscal year-a target my colleagues and I have been advocating for since April,” said Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill. “And while I’m disappointed in the projected number of refugees to be admitted this fiscal year, I acknowledge the challenges the Biden Administration inherited with the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program due to the anti-immigrant actions of the previous Administration.”
Who are the lucky 125,000 who will be allowed into the U.S? According to the Washington Post, several groups will receive consideration.
The report says there will be “increased resettlement of LGBTQI+ refugees; priority access for at-risk Uyghurs, Hong Kong refugees, and Burmese dissidents; and resettlement of Burmese Rohingya.” All those groups are deserving of American protection. But the question lingers: Why aren’t Christians residing in Muslim lands deserving of the same protection? Why does the U.S. have trouble even recognizing their persecution? Muslims are very touchy about accusations of persecuting Christians. By their lights, they are very tolerant of other religions. Indeed, “official” persecution is nearly unheard of. The church burnings, the murder of priests and clergy – these crimes are committed by local fanatics and tolerated by the Muslim majority. The persecution comes when authorities turn a blind eye to the violence – or subtly encourage it. This allows governments to claim they allow religious freedom while perpetrating a genocide.