Don’t Forget Our Roots
This letter to the editor, by John Krizek, appeared in the Hudson Star Observer on January 30, 2025.
Under the U.S. Immigration and Nationality Act (USINA) of 1980, a refugee is defined as a person who has experienced past persecution or has a well-founded fear of persecution on account of race, religion, nationality, membership in a particular social group, or political opinion. Individuals meeting this definition were considered for refugee status. That definition also applied to those already in the United States. Since the passage of the Refugee Act, the United States has admitted more than 3.1 million refugees.
Before USINA, refugee admissions began in 1945, when hundreds of thousands of refugees suffering from Nazi persecution were admitted from European countries.
In 1948, the Displaced Persons Act allowed millions of refugees from China and Eastern Europe to be admitted under the sole criterion that they declare themselves anti-communist. In 1975, over 400,000 East Asians were admitted without any screening.
In 2017, Donald Trump imposed a “Muslim ban,” which was struck down by the courts because it discriminated based on nationality. Then, in 2019, he created an immigration cap of 15,000 refugees who could meet the USINA screening criteria.
In 2022, Joe Biden increased the USINA ceiling to 125,000 refugees, though it was not met due to a shortage of judges and staff. President Biden also made an effort to reunite over 1,000 families torn apart by Trump’s deportation policies.
On Jan. 20, 2025, Donald Trump slammed the door on any refugees meeting the USINA standard and suspended refugee resettlement in America.
In 1914, my grandfather came to America from Poland on a forged visa. It wasn’t until 1938 that he became a naturalized citizen. Were it not for him, I would not be here.
We are a nation of immigrants. Knowing where we have come from and where we are going is important.
On the Statue of Liberty, it says, “Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free.”