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From the President’s Desk Iraqi Refugees-Will America Respond Nobly or Fearfully? The fastest growing large group of refugees in the world today are those fleeing the violent chaos in Iraq. The U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees estimates that 4.2 million of Iraq’s 26 million people—one out of every seven—have fled from their homes. Of these, 2 million are displaced within Iraq, and 2.2 million have sought refuge in other countries, mainly Syria and Jordan. Each month, another 60,000 are displaced. Whatever one thinks about the American engagement in Iraq, our country undeniably bears responsibility for the humanitarian consequences of our actions, however unintended and painful those consequences might be. Up to now, U.S. assistance for Iraqi refugees has been pitifully small. Yes, the United States has contributed toward UNHCR appeals for Iraqi refugees, most recently through a $30 million grant toward the education of Iraqi refugee children. And yes, the United States has pledged to resettle 7,000 Iraqi refugees this year. Yet the amounts contributed pale beside the humanitarian need, and pale even more beside the sums spent to prosecute the war. As for those being resettled, at the end of August the total number of Iraqi refugees admitted to the United States since the invasion in 2003 was still below 1,000. Why is our country so fearful to reach out an arm of rescue to the Iraqis? The reasons, I think, relate to security and to politics. The Department of Homeland Security has been extraordinarily cautious in admitting Iraqis. It would be a coup for Al-Qaeda and a terrible blow to the refugee program, they say, if terrorists were able to slip in among the refugees. On the political side, the flight of so many is an indicator of failure of current nation-building efforts in Iraq. Furthermore, it might be difficult to explain publicly why America should begin accepting large numbers of Iraqi refugees while continuing to send our troops over there. (That said, State Department refugee officials have been clear in their statements that politics should not diminish America’s humanitarian response for the Iraqis.) The Iraqi refugee crisis presents an enormous moral challenge to our country. The chain of events set off by the American invasion of Iraq has resulted in massive human displacement and suffering. Will our nation respond generously to alleviating that suffering through our overseas assistance? Will we be willing to take a small level of calculated risk—after thorough screening by our government’s security officials—and offer refuge to Iraqis who have had to flee? Will we stand by those Iraqis who are enduring threats and persecution precisely because they have worked for or supported our forces? Will we be willing to welcome Iraqi refugees into our communities even if we have mixed feelings about the war? LIRS stands ready to welcome and serve Iraqi refugees, but first our nation must choose: Will we act nobly or will we be paralyzed by fear?
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