The subject of immigration and refugee resettlement has become a hot-button political topic in recent years. One Spokane organization recently hosted an event to encourage conversation about the issue at the local level.
About fifty people gathered on Spokane’s South Hill for a “Coffee Talk” Saturday Morning on the subject of refugees in Spokane. The event was hosted by SpokaneF?VS, a non-profit faith and values news website which recently opened a community center on the South Hill. Audience members asked questions to panelists who included Jackson Lino, a refugee from Sudan who now works for World Relief Spokane.
"A refugee is someone who is forced. They do not have a decisive decision to leave their country. They have to go, otherwise they are killed," Lino said. "The definition is actually determined by the United Nations. It means someone who has a well-founded fear and is being persecuted due to five things: their race, nationality, religion, political affiliation, or social group. So it is a legal definition."
Another panelist was Ben Shedlock, a community activist who recently participated in a cross-state bike ride to raise money for World Relief offices in Kent, the Tri Cities and Spokane. He addressed a question about what individuals could do to support refugees and other newcomers in their community.
"Making donations to the World Relief office is really important. Offices locally are relying more and more on local support." Shedlock said. "Also support local business. I'm repping Cedar Coffee today. They're a refugee-owned business. Kiev European Market is another one. You know, we talked about Cathy McMorris Rodgers a little bit ago. Make phone calls everyday to their office and say, 'you need to be resettling 95,000 people per year. Keep the American leadership going.' Make sure that representatives understand that this is part of our civic obligation to welcome these people."
Some in the audience expressed frustration at the current political climate and the Trump Administration, which has decreased the number of refugees accepted by the United States from 85,000 per year in 2016 to just 30,000 in 2019. But ultimately the take-away from the panel was a message of hope, as offered by Jackson Lino, refugee from Sudan,
"Honestly, when I first came to this country, what really made me feel like I was welcomed was the fact that someone like you stepped forward. Someone like you came to my home and said, 'welcome' and took me by the hand and walked me to school. You can ask any refugee what they want most. Relationship. Friendship. They want to know that someone is there for them. Someone is willing to take their time, their energy to be with them."