Southern mayors rebuke fear mongers; welcome refugees

[umbertino]

by: Larry Rubin

December 8 2015

 

 

 

DURHAM, NC - Shortly after Rick Scott, the governor of Florida, told CNN News that he wants no Syrian refugees in his state, the mayor of the state capital said he will welcome them.

 

Andrew Gillum, the mayor of Tallahassee, announced: "I pledge my continued support for providing the care and refuge needed by those escaping violence and persecution. ... When we turn against each other as neighbors and global citizens, the terrorists win."

 

Gillum is just one of many Southern mayors pushing back against fear-mongering and anti-refugee rhetoric.

 

Recently, eighteen Southern mayors sent a letter to President Obama expressing support for his call to resettle as many as 10,000 Syrian refugees in the U.S. over the next year.

 

Also, Clarkston, Georgia, Mayor Ted Terry spoke out against Georgia Governor Nathan Deal's request to bar additional Syrian refugees from the state.

 

Terry said, "the reality is that extending a welcoming hand and relief for people who, through no fault of their own, are caught up in this civil war is an incredibly smart and powerful way to engender confidence and friendship across the Middle East and across the entire world,"

 

In addition, Nashville Mayor-elect Megan Barry publicly rebuked Tennessee Governor Bill Haslam's request that federal officials stop sending Syrian refugees to his state.

 

Barry, said "I believe that when Nashville can welcome new Americans that we should try the best we can to do that and give them support that [they] need."

 

Moreover, the Institute for Southern Studies, based here, circulated a statement saying "Many community advocates and direct service providers are calling for compassion instead of fear."

 

The Institute cited many examples of Southern hospitality being extended to refugees, including:

 

The North Carolina Justice Center and the Tennessee Immigrant and Refugee Rights Coalition have both launched online petitions condemning moves by their state officials to block resettlement of Syrian refugees.

 

The Catholic Charities organization in Louisville, Kentucky, is preparing to welcome 200 refugees from Syria. Sixty three Syrians have already been resettled in Kentucky, about half of whom are children.

 

Students at Middle Tennessee State University have started a social media campaign to combat Islamophobia on campus and in the broader community of Murfreesboro, where construction of a new mosque in 2010 was plagued by vandalism, arson, protests and a years-long lawsuit that ultimately failed.

 

The Movement to End Racism and Islamophobia, a North Carolina-based coalition, held a public forum in Fayetteville, near Fort Bragg. The Forum was co-sponsored by the Quaker Meeting of Fayetteville and Jewish Voice for Peace.

 

Furthermore, even after it received a threatening phone call, the Greensboro, North Carolina, office of the Church World Service continued helping Syrian refugees.

 

"These threats aren't going to keep us from serving refugees and resettling refugees," said Stephanie Elizabeth Adams, director of the group.

 

 

 

Photo: Movement to End Racism and Islamophobia.

 

 

http://www.peoplesworld.org/southern-mayors-rebuke-fear-mongers-welcome-refugees/

[SgtFuryUSCZ]

***///

 

The 'mayor' of St. Petersburg, FL has also come out to say Donald Trump is not welcome here.

 

But this is the cowardly city that caved to the radical terror group black uhuru movement, too, soooo...

 

And Donald Trump can travel freely, as he pleases... until a Court of Law say's he cannot...

mayor's 'edict' got no teeth.

[Yukon Silvermoon]

I'm not afraid.  They'll never show up here.  We're more heavily armed than they are. 

[SgtFuryUSCZ]

I'm not afraid.  They'll never show up here.  We're more heavily armed than they are. 

***///

 

they're already here in greater numbers than this administration will admit.

 

and they are more well armed, too...  

we don't have the whole family sittin' around the garage manufacturing pipe bombs, ied's, etc like they do

getting ready to rise up and slaughter US all....

 

See, YSM, hobummer has been trying to disarm US,

make it impossible to stockpile our own ammo,

limit the kind of weapons we need to take these terrorists out,

disarming our Law Enforcement, threatening our US Military Members, Veterans and

Patriots if we DO try to prepare for it here.....

[bohica]

Follow the money.  How many of those mayors are Democrats promised payback for this stance.  It takes a real fool to think that ISIS is not in the refugees because we have been told so by them and in their instruction manual.  We have already found ISIS in with the refugees.  I hope that the people of those cities make those mayors unemployed if they live till the next election.

[Flash101]

Agreed + 1 from me    :bravo:

[captl1]

I live in North Carolina and believe me they are NOT wanted here.

[DragonChylde]

Nashville's mayor certainly isn't speaking for Eastern TN. Here, there is a huge push to remove many refugees already here. Knoxville is having trouble already. I heard one of UT's games received a bomb threat. The good ole boys here do take their football seriously. The number of people carrying is visibly increasing. It seems many more trucks are being equipped with gun racks and more people being vocal about protecting their own family, property, etc. Heaven help ISIS if these good ole boys get hold of them.

[EagleEye]

still sounds like ancient Trojan Horse tactics to me...but heck what do I know...I'm just a VietNam vet with 210 combat missions to my record