funkymonkey1111
03-23-2016, 11:46
http://gazette.com/colorado-springs-residents-rally-at-city-hall-for-acceptance-of-refugees/article/1572732
don't worry, they're "fully vetted"
About 120 Colorado Springs residents rallied Tuesday on the steps of City Hall in support of refugees - especially Syrians - about 12 hours after deadly terrorist explosions ripped through the Brussels airport and subway.
Banners and speeches urging compassion and human kindness continued the community's strong opposition to City Councilman Andres Pico's March 7 proposal, "A Resolution Declaring Opposition to the Relocation of Refugees from the United States Refugee Resettlement Program to the City of Colorado Springs."
About 400 people emailed their objections to the council, and many testified in person March 7 and 8 and again during the council meeting Tuesday after the rally.
Pico said the proposal, which he will modify and reintroduce April 11, is intended to increase community security and prevent Islamic State terrorist infiltration among incoming refugees.
The opposite inference has been drawn, however, from its title and closing paragraph: "City Council hereby declares its opposition to the relocation of refugees to the City of Colorado Springs from the United States Refugee Resettlement Program until, and unless they are certified by the federal government not to pose a security threat."
Middle Eastern refugees undergo an intensive vetting system including multiple security background checks, iris scans and other biometric information, in a procedure that takes 18 to 24 months.
The Rev. Nori Rost, of All Souls Unitarian Universalist Church, told the council that the attacks in Belgium illustrate "what our Syrian brothers and sisters experience every day in their homeland. This is what they are fleeing; this is not what they are. Hospitality is the hallmark of Christianity, Judaism and Islam. There is no need for banning refugees from our city. All this does is uphold our national reputation as a bully."
Responded Pico: "There was absolutely nothing in that resolution banning refugees."
"I read the resolution," Rost replied, "and I know that. But that was the spirit."
"No, it was not," Pico declared.
Monday, the councilman met with Lutheran Family Services, the refugee resettlement agency for southern Colorado. He met with Catholic Charities on Friday and earlier attended a special "Refugees 101" class at the University of Colorado at Colorado Springs.
But some fear the information provided has fallen on deaf ears, particularly since Pico said Monday he will reintroduce some version of his proposition.
"I was hoping the whole resolution was going to go away," said council President Pro Tem Jill Gaebler. "To me, it's just about who we are and how we are perceived, and we have enough issues being the town where Doug Bruce lives."
Bruce, a felon now starting a two-year prison sentence, is the author of the Taxpayer's Bill of Rights, which limits taxation in the city and state.
Other speakers cited the city's profile as the birthplace of Amendment 2, which would have banned civil rights for gays and lesbians but was overturned by the U.S. Supreme Court as being unconstitutional.
At the rally, the Rev. Clare Twomey, of Vista Grande Community Church, cited a Holy Week message from the Episcopal bishops that rejected "the notion that we can ensure the safety of some by sacrificing the hopes of others."
"It's Holy Week," Twomey said, "and that is a time we Christians are reminded that the man we worship went to the mat for this," defending the rights of the downtrodden.
Joy Garscadden, operations manager for the Citizens Project, said her best friend is a Somali refugee, "and it took him two years to get here."
Pico's resolution is "basically the written equivalent of shaking your fist in the wind. You can't guarantee that no one will commit a crime ever," Garscadden said. "It's based on fear and pandering to how little people know about what the process actually entails. This isn't how we build strong community, by excluding people and playing to their strongest fears."
"The voices of hate and vitriol do not represent the community of Colorado Springs," said former state Rep. Dennis Apuan, who organized the rally.
don't worry, they're "fully vetted"
About 120 Colorado Springs residents rallied Tuesday on the steps of City Hall in support of refugees - especially Syrians - about 12 hours after deadly terrorist explosions ripped through the Brussels airport and subway.
Banners and speeches urging compassion and human kindness continued the community's strong opposition to City Councilman Andres Pico's March 7 proposal, "A Resolution Declaring Opposition to the Relocation of Refugees from the United States Refugee Resettlement Program to the City of Colorado Springs."
About 400 people emailed their objections to the council, and many testified in person March 7 and 8 and again during the council meeting Tuesday after the rally.
Pico said the proposal, which he will modify and reintroduce April 11, is intended to increase community security and prevent Islamic State terrorist infiltration among incoming refugees.
The opposite inference has been drawn, however, from its title and closing paragraph: "City Council hereby declares its opposition to the relocation of refugees to the City of Colorado Springs from the United States Refugee Resettlement Program until, and unless they are certified by the federal government not to pose a security threat."
Middle Eastern refugees undergo an intensive vetting system including multiple security background checks, iris scans and other biometric information, in a procedure that takes 18 to 24 months.
The Rev. Nori Rost, of All Souls Unitarian Universalist Church, told the council that the attacks in Belgium illustrate "what our Syrian brothers and sisters experience every day in their homeland. This is what they are fleeing; this is not what they are. Hospitality is the hallmark of Christianity, Judaism and Islam. There is no need for banning refugees from our city. All this does is uphold our national reputation as a bully."
Responded Pico: "There was absolutely nothing in that resolution banning refugees."
"I read the resolution," Rost replied, "and I know that. But that was the spirit."
"No, it was not," Pico declared.
Monday, the councilman met with Lutheran Family Services, the refugee resettlement agency for southern Colorado. He met with Catholic Charities on Friday and earlier attended a special "Refugees 101" class at the University of Colorado at Colorado Springs.
But some fear the information provided has fallen on deaf ears, particularly since Pico said Monday he will reintroduce some version of his proposition.
"I was hoping the whole resolution was going to go away," said council President Pro Tem Jill Gaebler. "To me, it's just about who we are and how we are perceived, and we have enough issues being the town where Doug Bruce lives."
Bruce, a felon now starting a two-year prison sentence, is the author of the Taxpayer's Bill of Rights, which limits taxation in the city and state.
Other speakers cited the city's profile as the birthplace of Amendment 2, which would have banned civil rights for gays and lesbians but was overturned by the U.S. Supreme Court as being unconstitutional.
At the rally, the Rev. Clare Twomey, of Vista Grande Community Church, cited a Holy Week message from the Episcopal bishops that rejected "the notion that we can ensure the safety of some by sacrificing the hopes of others."
"It's Holy Week," Twomey said, "and that is a time we Christians are reminded that the man we worship went to the mat for this," defending the rights of the downtrodden.
Joy Garscadden, operations manager for the Citizens Project, said her best friend is a Somali refugee, "and it took him two years to get here."
Pico's resolution is "basically the written equivalent of shaking your fist in the wind. You can't guarantee that no one will commit a crime ever," Garscadden said. "It's based on fear and pandering to how little people know about what the process actually entails. This isn't how we build strong community, by excluding people and playing to their strongest fears."
"The voices of hate and vitriol do not represent the community of Colorado Springs," said former state Rep. Dennis Apuan, who organized the rally.