Bay Space Prepares To Welcome A whole bunch Of Afghan Refugees – CBS San Francisco
OAKLAND (KPIX) – The network of religious organizations, nonprofits, nonprofit providers, volunteers and donors in the Bay Area is expanding in preparation for the waves of several hundred Afghan refugees to the South Bay, East Bay and beyond.
“At the moment we just expect the numbers to continue to rise. We anticipate a likely 200 relocation by September, ”said Holly Taines White, senior director of development and community engagement for Jewish Family and Community Services East Bay.
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According to White, that first round of Afghans arriving in Alameda and Contra Costa counties have a local connection with a friend or relative or a special immigrant visa. Some of the refugees had supported the US government in some way and made them targets of the Taliban.
White added that there had been an “outpouring” of support with thousands of volunteers.
“That’s one of the things we love so much about refugee resettlement in this community that it’s a really welcoming and warm community. And they understand the moral need to provide security and refuge for these people, ”White said.
Mindy Berkowitz, executive director of the Jewish Family Services of Silicon Valley, also expects to relocate around 200 Afghans by the end of September, and said the most pressing need is housing. Berkowitz called property owners with job offers.
“What we used to call a family-in-law or an additional house in the backyard. We have people who may be empty nests who still have big homes and can open their homes to a family. We also look for and work with people who own condominiums or own an Airbnb, ”said Berkowitz.
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JFSSV has also set a donation goal of $ 500,000 over the six months to help hire more staff and double the number of case managers and counselors in mental health, professional training, and other resources.
“The Bay Area is a place that celebrates diversity, and I know we will do everything we can to welcome these refugees who were there for us when we needed them,” said Berkowitz.
The Bay Area has a long history of helping refugees, one of the most notable being Operation Baby Lift’s first flight, which landed in Oakland in 1975. Hamilton Air Force Base in Novato processed thousands of Vietnamese refugees in the years that followed, many of whom were resettled nearby. The Bay Area is now home to one of the largest gatherings of Vietnamese Americans in the country.
For Dr. UCSF’s Tung Nguyen was eerily reminiscent of the fall of Saigon and the chaotic evacuation in 1975 to see the pictures of Afghans crowding into US facilities, chasing American military planes on the tarmac, and handing infants over to Marines.
“These photos from Afghanistan were really emotionally traumatic for me,” said Nguyen.
Nguyen, the president of PIVOT, the Progressive Vietnamese American Organization, has called in an open letter to allow more Afghan refugees to enter the USA.
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“I think the Vietnamese Americans in the United States really helped the country. And I have no doubt that the Afghan refugees we allow into this country will make a huge contribution to our country over time, ”said Nguyen. “The Vietnamese Americans who are here are here mainly because they took risks. And they had people to help them. And we just can’t sit by and do nothing while someone else is going through the same thing as us. “
