Organizations in Buffalo who work with refugee communities are speaking out against a decision from Washington, D.C. that could impact resettlement in the Queen City.
"It's bad news coming out of Washington. It's bad news for Buffalo," said Assemblyman Sean Ryan (D-Buffalo).
The Western New York Refugee and Asylee Consortium (WNYRAC) shared the same reaction to the President's order to cap the number of refugees at 18,000 for the 2020 fiscal year.
"Eighteen-thousand is not simply a number— 18,000 represents the U.S. closing our door on thousands of refugees who have been patiently waiting to come to the United States," said President of Jewish Family Service, Molly Carr.
WNYRAC is comprised of five organizations that work closely with refugees including the International Institute of Buffalo, Catholic Charities, Journey's End, Jericho Road, and Jewish Family Service.
"There are 70 million people in the world who are displaced looking to be safe," said International Institute of Buffalo Executive Director, Eva Hassett.
According to WNYRAC, the resettlement cap has spiraled downward in the last four years.
Back in 2017, the cap was set at 110,000 refugees, then 45,000 in 2018 and 30,000 in 2019. WNYRAC says 18,000 is now the lowest number since the U.S. resettlement program began nearly 40 years ago.
"The refugee resettlement program allows two things that rarely happen together," said Ryan. "You're able to provide great humanitarian assistance, but at the same time help to re-build our economy in Buffalo."
He says Western New York has begun to rebound from population loss that could be compromised by this new order from Washington.
"You cannot have a growing economy unless you have a growing population," the assemblyman added.
Ryan says the refugee population has filled employment and residential gaps throughout Western New York.
Eva Hasset of the International Institute of Buffalo says all WNYRAC organizations plan to continue their work and will not allow this new policy to discourage them.
"One of the competitive advantages of Buffalo is that we are a really good place for refugees and immigrants to come," added Hasset. "So we're not only affordable, we're welcoming!"