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Advocacy Sessions

Supporting Afghans Seeking Refuge

During this session, we will discuss the impacts of the U.S. military withdrawal from Afghanistan, followed by the take over from the Taliban, thus creating a mass exodus of tens of thousands Afghan refugees. We will discuss the increasing need to welcome Afghan new arrivals and continue advocacy to ensure Afghans left behind can still come to the U.S. for humanitarian protection. We will explore ways you can support Afghan refugees through educating your communities and mobilizing people to advocate for a robust welcome infrastructure that includes adequate funding and a pathway to citizenship for Afghans coming under a temporary status and seeking asylum.

Following this session, participants will:
Understand the current efforts to welcome Afghans to the US.
Understand how to advocate for greater inclusion and robust welcome infrastructure for Afghan arrivals.


Watch Session

Presenters

Shrosh Rafa

Khalil A. Arab, SIVs & Allies Program Manager, Combined Arms

Khalil A. Arab was born and raised in Herat, Afghanistan. He was ten years old when the Taliban took control, forcing him to drop out of school. During this time, Khalil did what he could to earn extra money for his family and began studying English. When coalition forces ousted the Taliban regime, Khalil returned to school and started a traveling theater troupe that performed in nearby villages. Their performances educated people on the importance of voting in the upcoming first-ever democratic elections. After graduating high school, Khalil worked as a plumber on various contracts with the U.S. government, building infrastructure to help the Afghan National Army. His English studies paid off as he interacted with American troops, and he was eventually offered a new position as an interpreter. He spent the next 5 years working with U.S. and coalition forces all around Afghanistan. He developed close relationships with the people he served with which continue to this day.

In 2010, Khalil was informed that the Taliban had started searching for him in his hometown. So as not to endanger his family, he left for India. From there, by way of the Polish embassy, he obtained a visa to the European Union. At first, he was placed in a refugee center near Warsaw. However, he had a friend in Krakow, and was able to go there instead. While in Krakow, Khalil attended Jagiellonian University, one of the oldest universities in the world. There, he earned a bachelor’s and master’s degree in Persian Studies and a second bachelor’s degree in American Studies. To give back, he served at the refugee center in Krakow to help coordinate services. While in Europe, he also spent time studying in Leipzig, Germany and Olomouc, Czech Republic.

In December 2019, Khalil finally received his Special Immigrant Visa to live in the United States. His brother had been living and working in Houston since 2017, so he too chose to make Houston his home. Khalil is just getting started in the U.S.A. He is planning on continuing his studies to eventually earn a PhD.

Miranda Hurtado-Ramos, Community Support Specialist, YMCA International Services

Miranda Hurtado-Ramos is the Community Support Specialist at YMCA International, an affiliate of USCRI in Houston, Texas, where she oversees in-kind donations, volunteers, community sponsorships, and partnerships for resettlement programs. In 2021 she was the point person at YMCA International for the USCRI/LDSC Community Sponsorship Pilot program. Previously she was a case manager and prior to YMCA International Miranda was a local political campaign manager and volunteered with immigration groups. A native of Houston, Miranda graduated from Brandeis University with a BA in Politics and Latin American/Latinx studies. She is passionate about education and gender equity.

Geeta Farahmand Rahimi, Resettlement Program Supervisor

Geeta Farahmand Rahimi is the Refugee Congress Delegate for Texas. She is a former Special Immigration Visa (SIV) Holder from Afghanistan who came to the United States in 2015 to save her and her family’s lives from terrorist groups. Currently she is working as Resettlement Program Supervisor with Refugee Services of Texas (RST) where she has the privilege of welcoming refugees and helping them resettle in the US. In Afghanistan Geeta held a number of roles focused on the rights of women, children and migrants, including: Training Methodology Director and Public Service Delivery Sr. Specialist with USAID projects in Afghanistan; Senior Education Officer with Save the Children International where she delivered child rights trainings and established Parent Teacher and Student Committees within target schools; with the International Organization for Migration (IOM) providing program assistance and supporting marginalized groups and internally displaced populations; and as Senior Training and Program Officer with Association of Defense for Women Rights. Geeta holds a bachelor degree in Literature from Afghanistan.

Watch Session

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