Refugee Admissions Decline 87% in October 2017, Relative to Oct 2016
President Trump promised to reduce the number of refugees entering America—especially those migrating from hotbeds of Islamic terrorism. So far, he’s done just that.
Last month (October 2017) the Trump administration admitted just 1,242 refugees, that is 87 percent fewer than the 9,945 admitted in October 2016. This is significant because October is the first month of the new fiscal year—it could be a harbinger of things to come.
Why the drop? A big component is tougher vetting measures imposed by the Trump administration, but Trump’s travel ban has also been instrumental. Breitbart reports:
In October 2017, the first month of FY 2018, only 275 refugees from these seven countries — Iran, Iraq, Libya, Somalia, Sudian, Syria, and Yemen — were admitted to the United States under the Refugee Admissions Program.
In contrast, in October 2016, the first month of FY 2017, a total of 4,581 refugees from these seven countries were admitted into the United States under the Refugee Admissions Program (1,352 from Somalia, 1,323 from Iraq, 1,297 from Syria, 414 from Iran, and none from either Libya or Yemen.)
As you can see, roughly half of all refugees admitted into America during the same period last year were from countries (ironically) identified by the Obama administration as posing high risks of terrorism—countries covered by Trump’s ban.
Proportion of Islamic Refugees Drops From 45 to 23 Percent Under Trump
It’s also worth noting that the proportion of Christians among the refugees America accepts has increased. In October 2016, 45 percent of all refugees were Muslims, while only 23 percent of those accepted in October 2017 were.
Furthermore, this is not an aberration from the norm: according to Pew Research, the number of Christian refugees as a proportion of total refugees has been rising since spring—from 41 in February to 57 percent by June. Conversely, the proportion of Muslim refugees fell from 50 percent to 31 percent over the same period.
This is good news, and consonant with historical norms.
According to data from the State Department’s Refugee Processing Center, the proportion of Muslim refugees increased dramatically under Obama. Indeed America accepted more Islamic refugees in 2016 than in any previous year.
Obama’s policy not only exposed American citizens to terrorist threats, but it contributed to the deaths of hundreds of Christians and Yazidis in the Middle East. How?
The Obama administration failed to apply a “religious test” to applicants from Muslim-majority countries, meaning that Assyrian Christians and Yazidis—those targeted by ISIS for genocide—were not given higher priority than were their Muslim compatriots, despite the greater dangers they faced.
Essentially, Obama’s refugee policy did not extricate those most in danger, and instead focused on maintaining illusions of “equality” and “diversity”.
Trump’s recognition of the plight of Middle Eastern Christians is a victory for common sense. Hopefully the recognition of the Ukrainian Refugee Crisis, and the violence against South African whites is next on the agenda.
