Many Afghan female-identifying women* arrived in New York City with their education and economic goals as part of their resettling journey. This past year in 2022, the IRC in NY’s Education & Learning (E&L) team designed a program for Afghan women.

Sediqullah and his brother, Ahmad, are two of the many Afghan individuals new to Salt Lake City, resettled to Utah with support from the IRC in Salt Lake City. Sediqulla shares his story and his hopes for the future.

In 2023, the IRC in Los Angeles helped resettle 578 refugee families, and we anticipate this number to increase in the new year. We need your support to continue to give refugees the warm welcome and help they deserve. Learn more about the various ways you can get involved below.

Earlier this year RAI-US launched the Pathways to Careers in Resettlement, Asylum, and Integration Scholarship Opportunity, as a new resource to diversify and enhance the talent pipeline, specifically targeting RAI-US internships. The scholarship’s main objective is to promote career paths in humanitarian work for BIPOC and/or immigrant populations and further our commitment to a diverse and inclusive internship experience. After receiving 35 applications from RAI-US interns, 8 interns have been selected to receive a $5,000 scholarship. One of those eight was chosen from the IRC in Oakland. Oakland is excited to introduce this year’s scholarship recipient: Gianna D’Arrigo!

Tom Greenleigh has been volunteering for the IRC in Salt Lake City office for 8 years. Working to support refugee and immigrant communities is in Tom’s blood: his ancestors worked to rescue and resettle refugees during World War II.

Tek is a refugee from Bhutan. Since resettling in Phoenix in 2009, he has found success as the owner of ABC Mart, a local grocery store. ABC Mart is one of the partners of the IRC in its Healthy Corner Store Initiative to provide fresh produce to refugees and other low-income Americans.

The Sayid family arrived in early fall 2021 to NYC from the base that temporarily housed evacuating families from Afghanistan. As a family of five, they were focused on resettling as soon as possible. A new beginning for them meant finding a new apartment, setting up social benefits, and enrolling their two children in school. More important is the emotional process of resetting and finding comfort through a difficult transition.

Prior to their arrival in Wichita, the IRC must set up a household that includes essential items for the arriving family. One way community members and organizations can contribute is to donate these goods which allows clients to to utilize limited resettlement funds on pressing needs such as rent and utilities as they work towards self-sufficiency.

The IRC (International Rescue Committee) in Phoenix received an increased number of Afghan refugees beginning in August of 2021, after the Taliban regained control of the region. In response to that, we were one of eight RAI (Resettlement, Asylum & Integration) offices who were granted funding to launch a new wellness program, Salamati Rohi, to support our Afghan clients.

This month Haben, an Eritrean refugee who was resettled by the IRC to Missoula three years ago, tells us abut her experience. When she arrived she spoke only a handful of words in English, but now speaks well enough to be interviewed for this story without interpretation.