Editor’s note: The Great State of Texas is being transformed from the inside out, as you will read here from Refugee Resettlement Watch.
I’m doing some research on Texas because I will be going there later this week. There is so much material on the number one resettlement state so I plan to post a little every day until I leave. For those of you who will be attending a gathering in Dallas, this is your homework assignment! You will be tested!
In Fiscal year 2014, Texas resettled 7,234 refugees. However, that doesn’t tell the whole story because according to the Texas Dept. of State Health Services (an excellent source of information on refugees in Texas), the actual number of migrants legally being treated as refugees last year was really 12,800 (up 24% from the previous year!).
The website also tells you which counties got the most refugees.
The 12,800 includes refugees, asylees, parolees, special immigrant visa holders (these are Afghans and Iraqis), and victims of trafficking.
They hailed from 58 countries (therefore Texas taxpayers are on the hook for many expensive translators—gratis a Bill Clinton executive order—for all sorts of reasons—access to health care, school system problems and the criminal justice system).
When I went to several different sources, I find that over 150,000 refugees have been resettled in Texas since 1983, and that number doesn’t include secondary migrants from other states (Dallas County got the most secondary migrants last year–60% of all those arriving in Texas).
And, of course, it doesn’t include all of the children produced in three decades! Nor does it include the thousands of ‘unaccompanied alien children’ that may not have been distributed around the nation from last year’s border invasion. Obama would like nothing more than to have them declared “refugees” as well (refugees get all forms of welfare upon arrival!).
These numbers do not include all of the other categories of ‘refugees’ cared for by local resettlement contractors and your tax dollars.
The top resettlement cities in Texas are (resettlement is not limited to these sites, dozens and dozens of smaller cities and towns are receiving refugees):
- Abilene
- Amarillo
- Austin
- Corpus Christi
- Dallas
- El Paso
- Fort Worth
- Houston
- San Antonio
For new readers, you might want to have a look at our archive on Amarillo which has developed into a ‘pocket of resistance’ as the mayor there has asked the federal government to slow the flow since the school system is suffering with the influx of non-English speaking children many of whom are illiterate in their own language. The meatpacking industry is responsible for much of the resettlement to Amarillo (hunger for cheap labor!).
The top nations from which Texas received refugees in 2014 were in this order: Iraq, Cuba, Burma, Afghanistan, and tied for 5th place Somalia and Bhutan(Nepal).
So when did Texas move into the number one spot in the nation?
For years and years other states ranked above Texas including California, New York and Florida. According to this very cool graph (above right), it was in 2011 that Texas gained this dubious distinction.
And, if you are wondering why the number dipped in 2011, this is why: That year it was learned that Iraqi terrorists disguised as refugees were arrested in Kentucky. Turns out the pair had lied (can you believe it, they lied!) on their refugee application and it was only when they were found to be planning on helping Al-Qaeda in Iraq was it discovered that one of them had left fingerprints on an IED shard that was warehoused by the US military. The shard came from an IED that had killed Pennsylvania National Guard troops. They are in prison for life.
The arrest threw the Refugee Admissions Program of the US State Department into chaos because they had to re-screen thousands and thousands of Iraqis headed to America. Iraqis make up the largest ethnic group we are admitting to America now at a rate of about 20,000 a year. The majority are Muslims (both Shiites and Sunnis as we import their centuries old squabble to your towns!).
That is enough for today. Here is your homework assignment:
In order to question this 35-year-old legal immigration program, you must first get the facts!
* Read our Fact Sheet, here. Open and read all the links in this post!
* Go to the Texas Department of State Health Services website and learn all you can about the refugees coming to Texas. Don’t miss the stats on their health conditions (refugees are admitted with TB, HepB, HIV and parasites).
* You have a State Refugee Coordinator and her name is Caitriona Lyons (she is Irish, btw), call her and ask her to direct you to the Texas refugee plan. Here is a description of the plan and the legal requirement that every state have one (and they must keep it current). Ask her to direct you to it and read it!
Remember in Texas your governor does have a say in what happens with refugee resettlement! Where has he been?
Here is a whole list of State Coordinators in case others of you want to start your research! Scroll down to Texas for Ms. Lyons contact information.
There will be further information and more homework tomorrow,
…..but must sign up for updates here REFUGEE RESETTLEMENT WATCH NOW