When President Donald Trump suspended the refugee program on the first day of his current term, thousands of people around the world, who were about to start a new life in the United States, found themselves abandoned.
Many had already sold their possessions or terminated their leases to prepare for travel. They had submitted piles of documents supporting their cases, had been interviewed by U.S. officials, and, in many cases, already had tickets to fly to the United States.
As part of Trump’s offensive against legal and illegal migration, the Republican president has drastically disrupted the decades-old refugee program that has been a beacon for those fleeing war and persecution. In October, he resumed the program, but set a historic low for refugee admissions: only 7,500 — mostly white South Africans.
A series of new restrictions was announced after an Afghan citizen became a suspect in the shooting of two National Guard members last week. The Trump administration also plans a review of refugees who were admitted during the Democrat Biden administration. The Trump administration has alleged economic and national security concerns to justify its policy changes.
Around 600,000 people were already being processed to come to the United States as refugees worldwide when the program was suspended, according to the government. Dozens of white South Africans were allowed entry this year. But barely 100 more have been admitted as a result of a lawsuit filed by activists seeking to restart the refugee program, said Mevlüde Akay Alp, a lawyer defending the case.
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“It is important that we do not abandon those families, and that we do not abandon the thousands of people who trusted in the promise to come here as refugees,” said Akay Alp, from the International Refugee Assistance Project.
The Associated Press spoke with three families whose lives have been hit by the change in policies.
