In 2021, Madina and her sister fled Afghanistan in dangerous circumstances to avoid the Taliban’s ascension to power. Due to safety concerns, her entire identity has been suppressed.
In the past, my father worked alongside American soldiers. Because you’re putting yourself at risk, it was really challenging to leave the country. They sort of put you on a list after they find out you’re leaving, like when you’re traveling to the United States. Through a translator, she stated, “They can kill you if you go back.”
The sisters are attempting to adjust to their new life in Connecticut, where they are now safe and legal.
Nina Opansenko from Ukraine is also.
In the early days of the current conflict, Opansenko and her two kids fled the heavily missile-blasted city of Sumy in eastern Ukraine. Since then, she and her husband—who is still in Ukraine—have been attempting to restore her jewelry business in the United States.
I didn’t believe I would [go]. I had a great existence in Ukraine, where I lived my entire life. According to Opansenko, I had it all: kids, a decent job, friends, and possibilities. I truly enjoy my life here, and I cherish every second of it. But regrettably, I didn’t anticipate it.
Although it is allowed to enter the country as a refugee, many people are afraid of their status due to recent mass deportations, travel restrictions, and cancellations of visa programs. The concern has not decreased despite the fact that the majority of Afghan and Ukrainian nationals have entered the country through humanitarian parole, a temporary immigration status that covers people experiencing grave humanitarian emergencies.
Maryam, a 20-year-old Afghani woman, also requested that her last name be kept anonymous due to safety concerns. After Taliban regulations prohibited her from going to medical school and her sisters from completing high school, she and her family arrived in the United States in late 2024.
Maryam and one of her sisters were selling handmade candles and paintings at a recent craft market in New Haven organized by a refugee aid organization to help pay for their education. For people fleeing violence in their native countries, she said, the United States’ constantly shifting immigration laws are frightening.
Not only do refugees from Afghanistan experience it, but refugees from all other countries do as well. According to Maryam, they are scared of the new circumstances here.
Advocates claim that fear has pervaded refugee communities since the beginning of the Trump administration. An increasing number of vulnerable people are seeking assistance from community resources.
Restarting lives in Connecticut for those with refugee and other protected categories has been made possible in large part by local organizations and community groups. Although the recent immigration crackdowns have put a strain on available resources, they have also increased the desire for volunteer assistance.
Since it first began sponsoring Laotian refugees in the 1970s, West Hartford’s St. James Episcopal Church has been assisting immigrant communities. Since then, the group has helped a Syrian family relocate locally and is now feeding undocumented people in the Hartford region.
Recent government immigration policies, according to Rev. Bob Hooper, have only encouraged his parishioners to get more involved.
Our urge to aid those less fortunate has always been there, as has our awareness of our own need as wealthy individuals. “Seeing how abusive the system is has really inspired people here,” Hooper added. We can provide you with food even though I might not be able to prevent a deportation or obtain the necessary documentation, though we have also been able to assist with that.
The Trump administration’s decision to shut down the Welcome Corps, a federal program that offered assistance to refugees arriving in the country, was one of the largest setbacks to U.S. refugee care organizations. Welcome Corps, which had previously let Americans to personally sponsor refugees, was dismantled by the Trump administration on February 26.
Supporters claim that because fewer refugees can now get the required money or permits to reach the US, its closure has had significant effects.
Carrie Berman volunteers with SAWA, a group that assists recently arrived migrants in Connecticut and is headquartered in West Hartford. Despite having authorized documentation, she claims that a family of Syrian refugees has been unable to enter the US due to Welcome Corps’ closure.
Ten months prior, the family I was dealing with had already gotten their application approved. Berman said, “They’ve been approved.” This family of eight is currently stranded in Jordan and is experiencing health issues.
Berman and her all-volunteer organization collaborate closely with IRIS, a nonprofit organization based in New Haven that offers legal and case management services to people with refugee and other special status.
Since the Trump administration changed or discontinued government funding, IRIS has seen large budget losses in recent months. It is having trouble serving all of its clients and has closed its New Haven office.
Maggie Mitchell Salem is an immigrant and refugee advocate and the executive director of IRIS. Similar to Berman, she has also assisted individuals who are seeking protection in the United States but have had their entrance refused just before they arrive or have been unable to secure the status they need to remain in the country permanently. According to Salem, people like Maryam and Madina are especially vulnerable.
I’m concerned about humanitarian parolees from Afghanistan. According to her, their journey was accelerated in August 2021 and many of them are Afghan sympathizers or former employees of the Afghan national government. Some of the individuals who arrived during those initial months were humanitarian parolees who were awaiting the adjustment of their status to a more permanent track.
According to her, some people require time to demonstrate that they are qualified and have worked with American military and the government in order to be granted a special immigrant visa or to be considered refugees.
According to her, many of them have not experienced that change in status.
Due to the ambiguity, many people are afraid of being deported themselves or are unable to obtain visas for family members who are in danger.
Madina worries about her family’s standing back home as well as her own because her father served with American forces in Afghanistan. The rest of her family is still in the Middle East and cannot travel with her due to recent travel restrictions enforced by the Trump administration. Her father has had trouble obtaining a visa.
Right now, my family is essentially in ruins. My mother and both of my brothers remain in Afghanistan. There has been no word yet, but my father is waiting to travel here from Qatar. Madina stated, “I’m afraid for both being here and for the dispersed family back home.”
We are in an extremely frightening situation since I have no idea what will happen to us. I have no idea what will happen to my father, mother, and two brothers back home.
Southern Connecticut State University student Avery Martin is majoring in journalism. The Connecticut Student Journalism Collaborative, an organization supported by journalism departments at colleges and universities around the state, is the source of this story’s republishing through CT Community News.
