“They Are a Part of Our Human Population Too”:LSS Says How It Will Handle Refugee Controversy
The future of refugee resettlement in the North Dakota is the subject of a meeting with social workers from around the state.
It’s become a lightning rod issue in the Valley and nationwide.
Officials with Lutheran Social Services say it’s a good thing refugee resettlement is in the news, even though it has become something that seems to divide the community.
What started off as a small regular meeting 20 years ago has transformed into a statewide effort, with social workers from Grand Forks and Bismarck joining in.
“Now, nationally, organizations across the nation are doing these types of meetings because they know it’s important to get input from the community and from community providers,” says Linda Schell, Assistant State Refugee Coordinator with Lutheran Social Services.
Social workers focused on next year’s work, emphasizing the unaccompanied minor refugee program.
“It’s probably 10–15 kids a year, so it’s not a huge number”, says LSS CEO Jessica Thomasson. “But the children that are in our care through unaccompanied refugee minors have lost their parents, many times they have been killed, or separated from their family.”
The focus also turned to community outreach. Controversy surrounded local refugee resettlement earlier this year, and the Paris terror attacks brought the issue in the national spotlight.
Thomasson adds, “It would be fair to say that there are more people thinking about this topic now than have been in a long time.”
Officials at Lutheran Social Services say a lot more people know about refugee resettlement programs than in the past. They say it’s their job to educate them on what programs do for people coming into the community.
“I think it’s really important to just have open, honest dialogue,” Thomasson says.
That means creating ways for the public to learn more.
A Building Bridges conference is scheduled for April.
“Once you’ve been able to meet with refugees and know them, you know that they are part of our human population, all of us together, and we can be open about asking those questions that are frightening,” Schell says.
They say knowledge is the key to bringing everyone together in harmony.
As for the resettlement program itself, Lutheran Social Services plans to aid in the resettlement of Bhutanese refugees next year.
There are no plans to bring any Syrian refuges to Fargo, but officials say that could change depending on global circumstances.
