World Relief Triad works to integrate refugees and immigrants, like Ali, in their transition to the United States. But this is not the client’s first time being displaced. The first time, he said, was when he was about 10 years-old. His family and others fled their village to the mountains of Afghanistan.
“They displaced us from our area,” Rahmani, who speaks limited English, said. “We went to the mountains, and it was cold outside. We had to go to the mountains in order to be secure, in order not to be killed. We were hungry and thirsty.”
Ali goes on to share about his family’s journey from the airport in Kabul to Abu Dhabi, Philadelphia, PA, Virginia, and finally landing in North Carolina. Worry still grips him when he thinks about his family who has been left back in Afghanistan, however. The client went on to discuss the horrific outcome of what could await his family, and himself as a displaced person without a permanent path to citizenship.
“The Afghans that are arriving mostly are coming in with what is called a humanitarian parole status,” Rob Cassell, Executive Office Director, says.
This is a temporary status that is good for two years.
“There is no guaranteed path to permanent residency for these Afghans right now,” Cassell says. “They have to apply through the asylum process at this point.”
To read more of Ali’s story and learn about the current situation in Afghanistan, click the following link.
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