Refugees Are NOT the Threat We Need Fear

   As many of you already know, Doreen and I have had decades of experience working with refugees, including people from Iraq and Syria. People in the US and elsewhere are understandably more concerned with security after the ISIS attacks last week. In our balancing concern for security with our concern for compassion, there are at least two things you need to know, particularly in regards to refugees.
    First, a terrorist from another country who wanted to do harm to the US would most likely enter our country with a tourist or student visa. This is the route that the 9/11 terrorists used. To get one, you just visit a US embassy for a ten minute interview. The visa takes about two weeks and is good for multiple entries for six years. If the terrorist is a national citizen, from, say, France or Belgium, or any other western European nation, the terrorist would not need a visa, but only a passport, much like it takes US citizens to visit Europe.
    Second, if a terrorist wanted to enter the US as a refugee, the daunting task of getting all the clearances would take about two years. Here are two sites that describe the current process, the second site goes into more detail. http://www.nytimes.com/…/why-it-takes-two-years-for-syrian-…
(The second site:) https://www.americanprogress.org/…/infographic-the-screen…/…
    When our government leaders target refugees as threats to our security, they are missing the point of protecting our safety, and they are attacking some of the most vulnerable people in the world. As followers of Jesus, we can call for compassion and justice without sacrificing any security on this issue. We have already sponsored refugees from Iraq and Syria. I hope we can do it again, and I would welcome them into our home.