Though President Biden set an ambitious goal of resettling 125,000 refugees in fiscal year 2023, the U.S. only successfully resettled about 60,000 individuals. While that is much lower than the goal, it is actually much higher than previous years.
Additionally, in 2023, the Biden administration launched a pilot program allowing for private sponsorship of refugees known as Welcome Corps. Though more must still be done to rebuild the infrastructure needed to quickly resettle those who are persecuted, including many brothers and sisters in Christ, these are encouraging trends and opportunities for Christians to engage those who arrive in our communities.
We will continue to advocate for fully restoring the refugee resettlement program and America’s legacy as a beacon of hope to those fleeing persecution.
As part of that advocacy, the ERLC has urged Congress to give priority refugee status to Uyghurs and Hong Kongers fleeing persecution from the Chinese Communist Party. Additionally, the ERLC has urged Congress to maintain the longstanding, bipartisan Lautenberg Amendment in fiscal year 2024 appropriations which provides a vital refugee pathway to religious minorities, including many evangelicals, in former Soviet Union countries and Iran.
A letter was sent to President Biden and Members of Congress on September 23, 2022.
