ABOUT EMMELINE WEINERT:
Emmeline helped co-found Washtenaw Refugee Welcome in 2015 and became Board President in 2018 when the group formally incorporated as a 501c-3 non-profit. She has worked for a number of nonprofits and is currently employed with the American Red Cross - Michigan Region Disaster Cycle Services team.
RESOURCES:
Washtenaw Refugee Welcome (WRW)
TRANSCRIPTION:
David Fair: This is 89.1 WEMU, and the changes in federal priorities and policy continue to come at a fast and furious pace. It often leaves service organizations little time to adapt, and that can result in harm to those in need. I'm David Fair, and I'd like to welcome you to this week's edition of Washtenaw United. Among the local organizations working to process change while continuing to serve its constituency is Washtenaw Refugee Welcome. It's a nonprofit volunteer organization designed to give long-term support to refugees who are working to build a new life in Washtenaw County. Our guest today is Emmeline Weinert, and she is co-founder and board president of Washtenaw Refugee Welcome. Thank you so much for making time for us today, Emmeline! I appreciate it!
Emmeline Weinert: Thank you so much for having me, David!
David Fair: In the polarized world in which we live, science, truth and fact are often questioned and the definitions of words we use can change depending on who is using them. How do you define "refugee" today?
Emmeline Weinert: Well, a refugee is a person who's been forced to flee their home for any number of reasons. It can be a natural disaster. It can be human conflict. But, for whatever reason, their government cannot or will not protect them. And so, people are forced to flee. The word is used a little bit differently in different countries and different contexts, so that's sort of the broad definition. When we talk about a refugee in the United States, we're talking about somebody who fled their home country to a secondary country and then got something called "refugee status" that allowed them to come to the United States. When you hear about refugees like in Europe, people are crossing borders there before they get that clearance, so we might call them like an asylum seeker. But in the United States context, we're generally talking about somebody who's fear of return to their home country has already been established. They've already been vetted, and then they've been given a visa to come into the United States.
David Fair: When you started this organization back in 2015, from where were the majority of refugees that you were working with?
Emmeline Weinert: Well, at that time, a group of concerned folks around the Washtenaw County area came together because of our awareness of the Syrian refugee crisis. It was in the news a lot, and it was a crisis that was escalating very quickly and was, of course, very polarizing, too. But actually, when we got involved talking about Syrian refugees, it helped open a lot of our eyes to the migratory crises that were happening elsewhere as well, even though it wasn't always in our news cycle. There are folks fleeing on almost every continent at various different times for different reasons. And so, there's a lot to be done in supporting people who are in those situations. So, we came together specifically around Syrians but have really broadened and been supporting people who're coming to our community from many different places now.
David Fair: So, over the past 10 years, how has it changed in Washtenaw County?
Emmeline Weinert: The way that refugee resettlement works--just to take a step back, so, like you said, when we're talking about refugees, we're generally talking about people who get that refugee visa, but there are a couple different types. I won't get all those immigration legalese, but your special immigrant visas and temporary protected status. But from the most basic point of view when a family is approved for resettlement, they're assigned to a national resettlement agency and then to a local office that's affiliated with that national agency, and they try to put people near populations that are of similar culture or background. So, in Southeast Michigan, we obviously have a lot of folks who are Arabic-speaking or Farsi-speaking, people who are coming from Iraq, Iran, Afghanistan, various places like that. So, that's what we mostly get is folks from the Middle East. But we also get people from Central and East Africa. We have some folks from Central and South America. So, we get a mix, but definitely mostly folks out of the Middle East in our area.
David Fair: Our Washtenaw United conversation with Emmeline Weinert continues on 89.1 WEMU. Emmeline is co-founder and board president of Washtenaw Refugee Welcome. Once here, there are a number of barriers to overcome in bringing a new life to reality: everything from language barriers to transportation issues to employment. What are the measures that Washtenaw Refugee Welcome brings to the table to help overcome these kinds of obstacles?
Emmeline Weinert: Yeah. So, thank you for that question. Washington Refugee Welcome--we're actually not a licensed resettlement agency, but we are part of--
David Fair: Jewish Family Services is the only one in Washtenaw County, right?
Emmeline Weinert: Exactly! That's correct. Jewish Family Services is our licensed resettlement agency. Folks in the area might also be familiar with Samaritas. They do a lot of work in southeast Michigan. So, we're part of that larger ecosystem of support for refugees. So, those resettling agencies have a formal casework relationship with a refugee that's coming in. Washtenaw Refugee Welcome--we really exist to support those organizations and then provide longer-term support and social support to refugees, because the formal arrangement with those resettlement agencies is 90 days where they're enrolling kids in school, helping people find jobs, getting them signed up for any benefits that they're eligible for. They attempt to settle people toward communities, like I said, who have similar backgrounds, but mostly people come not knowing anybody.
David Fair: And 90 days is not a lot of time.
Emmeline Weinert: It is not. It's a very short-term amount of time for anyone to get settled and become self-deficient. And if you don't have supportive infrastructure when you get here, like most of us, we have a friend that we could call if we had a question, or somebody who could give us a ride, or loan us money even short- term if they needed. Refugees don't any of that sort of thing. So, Washtenaw Refugee Welcome--we try to be that phone-a-friend. We try to create social opportunities for people to meet their neighbors and get to know their community a little bit better. So, I think it's a really important role that it's nice to kind of have the separation that we're not--the resettlement agency--responsible for making sure that they hit certain deadlines and do certain things. But rather, we're somebody that they can turn to to say, "How do I use the bus system?" and "How does the library work?" and "I got this piece of mail, and I just don't know what to do with it."
David Fair: And as a volunteer-driven organization, how do you create the kind of workforce that can take the time to help build that community?
Emmeline Weinert: Well, fortunately, there is no shortage of folks in Washtenaw County who want to be those welcoming arms for refugees who are coming to our community. We're a pretty informally structured organization, like volunteer-led, as you've said--very nimble. We do a lot of social events, so we do a monthly meetup on the second Saturday of every month. We're hosted by a local congregation for that. And it's just a time for people to come, meet people, that's where we kind of find out what's going on in their lives, too, and see how we might be able to step in and help. We do periodic, larger social functions, like we always do a summer picnic. A different congregation hosts us for a Thanksgiving potluck. We do a pumpkin painting, things like that, just to help people feel welcome, maybe introduce them to some American holidays. And we have no shortage of just wonderful community members who show up to those events.
David Fair: Do you find that there's a great interest in assimilating into a more, shall we say, American way of life?
Emmeline Weinert: I'd say there's a beautiful blend there. So, we love potlucks. We're big on potlucks, and people love to bring their food from their culture, and then also try things that our longer-term American residents bring as well. And it's just a beautiful sharing. But refugees are really motivated to find work, become part of the community, start giving back. I mean, they're our best volunteers too. Like, they're bringing their neighbors who they meet, "Hey, my neighbor just got resettled here." A lot of folks end up in the same apartment complexes and stuff. They bring them to our events and help them get connected. Like, it's really a very inner supportive type of community.
David Fair: Once again, we're talking with the co-founder and board president of Washtenaw Refugee Welcome. Emmeline Weinert is our guest on 89.1 WEMU's Washtenaw United. We have to talk about the changing political landscape. Undocumented immigrants are being deported. Again, as you mentioned, you largely work with folks who have arrived with approved refugee visas or other types of temporary protected status. Does that really amount to protection anymore?
Emmeline Weinert: Yeah, it's been a very uncertain time for immigrants of all kinds, and that's definitely changed the landscape for us as an organization and how we're adjusting our services to support refugees and immigrants. Yeah, we've talked a little bit about what the refugee resettlement process looks like. That was put on a 90-day pause, and then the new administration actually went ahead and canceled the contract for the national resettling agencies. That's still going through the court system right now, so, again, there's a lot unknown. But the end result is that there's no pipeline of new folks coming in. And we at Washtenaw Refugee Welcome find that very disappointing. There are people who want to come to our community, who we want to see come to our community who are in safe situations. So, we certainly would advocate that we would like to see the refugee resettlement process restarted.
David Fair: What are you hearing most from the people you work with in Washtenaw County? Fear?
Emmeline Weinert: Yes, there's definitely a concern that when they came here, they had a certain expectation, and that that is no longer a reliable expectation. So, whether that's someone who has resettled through a resettlement organization and now that resettling organization is downsizing, they don't know if they're going to be able to get the same level of support from their caseworker or other things like that. People come on a refugee visa, but then, within a year, they can apply for long-term residence. So, go for that green card. People don't know if they're going to be able to move forward with those things. We plan to move for it as though they can and provide all the support that we can. But it's definitely fear, like you said. People are looking for stability. All of these folks have come from very unstable situations, and this was supposed to be the step that would help them create a long-term a future for their family. And we really want to see that happen for them.
David Fair: So, as you project forward, look forward, and have to prepare for what the future may hold, should current policy take hold and stay in place, what kind of impacts would it have on those who are already living here?
Emmeline Weinert: So, as I already mentioned, the license for settlement agencies, with that cap of new refugees sort of turned off, that drives up their funding. And it means that they have to downsize. So, that's really difficult because those are supportive services that refugees need. So, Washtenaw Refugee Welcome is actually adjusting some of our priorities for the first time we've brought on a paid caseworker to work with our team, but just as a contractor at this time because we just see that people need more help making sure that their food stamps stay on, that they understand what they're signing, what they are doing, looking for affordable housing, all that kind of stuff. So, we've made that adjustment, but the ripple effects are bigger than that, too. Michigan Immigrants' Rights Center is another nonprofit that's really important in this ecosystem of care. They're losing a lot of their funding. They work closely with unaccompanied minors, which is another population that I think a lot of our hearts go out to. Immigration court is the only place where kids are allowed to represent themselves. And if you don't have organizations like Michigan Immigrant Rights Center, those kids are not going to have legal representation. And we already know that the legal outcomes are much worse for kids in that situation. And that can lead to a longer-term instability and opportunities for them to be taken advantage of and abused. So, we just really want to see support going towards these organizations, so that the people who are already here are taken care of.
David Fair: Yeah, the Michigan Immigrant Rights Center has estimated that 800 of the 1,000 open cases it's dealing with right now they may not be able to help. That is a huge issue and may result in a lot of deportations. As you look forward, do you think that the community at large in Washtenaw County is going to push back against these policies?
Emmeline Weinert: I really hope that folks will push back and from what we've seen in Washtenaw County is very heartening. Like I said, we have no shortage of folks who really want to welcome refugees and show their support. Washtenaw Refugee Welcome is a secular nonprofit that we work a lot with the religious community, and there is so much motivation in mosques, churches, synagogues, all houses of worship where folks really feel like they have an obligation through their faith to support the stranger and welcome the immigrant. And so, I hope that those communities will continue to organize and continue to push back on this, because I do feel like it's an important part of who we are as Americans and our individual values that we bring.
David Fair: You know, everybody has their concerns, and everybody is focused on particular elements of their life that may be changing. If you were to offer a word that you would like people to take away from our conversation today and as we move into the future about the work you're doing and the importance of this community within our community, what would it be?
Emmeline Weinert: I would say the thing I want people to take away is that immigrants are really good for our community. They start businesses. They're active in their neighborhoods and schools. In Michigan, we've actually been concerned the last several years about population decline. So, bringing immigrants and refugees to Michigan is a wonderful thing. So, that's what I really hope that folks will take away from this is that we're stronger together. Our diversity is our strength. And we can do something to assist the folks who are already here. So, support Jewish Family Services and MIRC and Washtenaw Refugee Welcome. Reach out to folks in your community, come to some of our events, meet people. I think there's just so many ways that we can continue to grow community despite the challenges we're currently seeing.
David Fair: Well, thank you so much for the time and the conversation and information today, Emmeline! I appreciate it!
Emmeline Weinert: Thank you so much, David! We really appreciate the community response and the opportunity to get the word out about what's going on!
David Fair: That is Emmeline Weinert. She is co-founder and board president of Washtenaw Refugee Welcome and has been our guest on Washtenaw United. For more information on how to connect with the work they're doing, stop by our website and we'll get you linked up at wemu.org. Washtenaw United is produced in partnership with the United Way for Southeastern Michigan, and you hear it every Monday. I'm David Fair, and this is your community NPR station, 89.1 WEMU FM Ypsilanti. Celebrating 60 years of broadcasting from the campus of Eastern Michigan University!
WEMU has partnered with the United Way for Southeastern Michigan to explore the people, organizations, and institutions creating opportunity and equity in our area. And, as part of this ongoing series, you’ll also hear from the people benefiting and growing from the investments being made in the areas of our community where there are gaps in available services. It is a community voice. It is 'Washtenaw United.'
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