A Rhode Island non-profit dedicated to helping immigrants, refugees, and asylum seekers build a new home here in the U.S. is celebrating its 10th anniversary this week.
But the founders of the Refugee Dream Center in Providence say that their work is harder than ever in the current political climate.
“What we are confronting is not insurmountable,” said the group’s founder Dr. Omar Bah, a refugee from The Gambia, a West African nation that is one of the poorest countries in the world.
“But, amidst all of that, we are here to celebrate. There are a lot of things to celebrate,” he said.
The Refugee Dream Center offers a variety of programs to newcomers, including citizenship training, job search support, English language training, housing assistance and more.
But the work done by places such as the Dream Center is clearly not a priority for the Trump administration.
First, the White House cut the USRAP, the Refugees Assistance Program that provides federal funds to help refugees get on their feet. Now people are being deported by the planeload, as the administration seeks to exile immigrants it deems to be undesirable.
“Our community members are very afraid of being deported,” said executive director Teddi Jallow. “People are afraid of leaving their homes.” And, she said, the government is now reneging on its commitment to support them until they can become self-sufficient.
At a breakfast Monday at the Providence Public Library, Providence Mayor Brett Smiley reassured the immigrant community that the city has their backs. He urged people not to keep their kids home from school or to hesitate to call the police for fear of being deported.
“Providence police is here to protect all of our residents, regardless of status,” he said. “Providence schools will educate all children regardless of how long they have been in the country or what language they speak.
“The city government is here to serve all of our residents,” he said, noting that Providence also has a policy of granting municipal ID cards to people who can prove their identity, regardless of their immigration status.
In its 10 years, the Dream Center has helped thousands of people adjust to life in this country. They’ve secured jobs for 2,607 immigrants, provided housing assistance to 3,060 refugees, and mentored 2,250 children.
Among them, were people like Mohammad, who did not give his last name. He and his family fled Syria and were granted asylum here 10 months ago. Both of his elderly parents have disabilities. None of them spoke English.
“From the moment we came here, they helped us with necessary paperwork and helped us apply for SSI,” he said, choking up.
“They helped us to learn English, gave us computer classes, and until now provide us with food assistance. They even helped us pay the rent in difficult times,” he said.
“In short, they are a refugee’s best hope,” he said. “We wish them luck and success in their charitable work.”
Many of the families the group has helped have gone on to be productive members of the Rhode Island community. Many of them also give back to the people who helped them find their way.
“They pay taxes, they hold jobs, and they give back,” Bah said.
Night Jean Muhingabo, a poet and advocate, was among the first wave of people the Dream Center helped. A refugee from Rwanda, he arrived here with his mother and sister when he was 16 years old having spent his childhood in camps for people displaced by the Rwandan genocide and, later, moving from country to country in search of a home.
With help from the Dream Center, he won a Roger Williams Scholarship from the Rhode Island Foundation. That gave him the resources to study at Rhode Island College where he majored in public administration with a minor in computer science.
“These people changed my life,” Muhingabo said.
During college, he started to volunteer at the Dream Center. Now 26, he serves on the Providence Public School Board where he chairs the committee on health and wellness. He also serves on the Dream Center’s board.
Muhingabo said his life journey, shaped by the help he received from the Refugee Dream Center, taught him always to hold on to hope.
“You and I can make the world a better place by making ourselves better people,” he said.
