AUSTIN, Texas — Austin ISD announced Wednesday that the district is welcoming Afghan refugees in light of fleeing their country.
KVUE spoke with the CEO of Refugee Services of Texas, who said more than 300 Afghans would be seeking refuge in Texas, with 100 of those coming to Austin.
"These are individuals who I believe we have a moral obligation to help,” said Russell Smith, the CEO of Refugee Services of Texas. “And we've actually made that promise to them, that they helped us in our efforts in Afghanistan, which has put them in their families' lives at risk. And so both fulfilling our promise and also kind of the moral obligation to get them out of harm's way."
Each year, more than 10,000 Afghans come to the U.S. through the SIV program, but now just in this current wave, they are expecting about 30,000 SIV-holders to move to the U.S.
AISD said that for years, its Refugee Family Support Services Office has served as a language and resource hub for hundreds of refugees and asylees enrolled in the district.
Smith told KVUE that four families already arrived this past week, and the first to arrive was a family of seven.
For more information about the Austin ISD refugee and immigrant services, visit the Refugee Family Support Services Office website. For more information on how you can help Afghan SIV families, click here.
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