President Trump signed an executive order suspending the United States Refugee Admissions Program (USRAP), effective January 27th, 2025. 

The US Refugee Admissions Program has been a cornerstone of our nation’s immigration policy since 1980, receiving bipartisan support and serving as a testament to our country’s foundation of humanitarian assistance. Each year, the United States welcomes a small group of refugees – individuals and families who have been forcibly displaced from their homes due to war, persecution, and violence. Before refugees are resettled in the United States, they undergo an extensive security screening process, a collaboration between domestic and international agencies. This rigorous vetting is a hallmark of the most secure form of legal immigration to the United States.

Suspending the USRAP has left the thousands of refugees already cleared for resettlement stranded with no home to return to - many of whom are seeking reunification with family members in the United States. 

Now on 1/24, the Trump administration has gone one step further, and announced an immediate end to government funding for refugee families who have recently arrived in the United States.

This is a sudden and unprecedented halt of the government funding that provides food, housing, job assistance, and basic needs to the refugee families who our country has already committed to helping, and to whom this support was promised. 

NICE is currently caring for 128 recently-arrived refugees - courageous and resilient families who were forced to flee their homes, and who dream of a peaceful new life. 

Over the past two decades, NICE has seen lives be transformed through our resettlement program. The families we serve are courageous, resilient, hard-working, and kind. They contribute to the cultural and economic richness of our city, region, state, and nation. They love this country, and the promise of hope it offers. You can view some of those inspiring stories here. Our hearts are broken for the families who have waited patiently to see their loved ones again, and for all those in need of humanitarian relief around the world who now face an uncertain future.

Refugees have a significant positive economic impact in the United States, generating tens of billions of dollars of revenue for communities across the country. Without new arrivals, employers will lose access to the refugee talent pool that helps to fuel economic growth in a wide variety of industries. The potential negative economic impact of this executive order may be significant, as we face a nationwide labor shortage.

Now, this abrupt cutoff in funding puts the newcomer families in the care of refugee resettlement agencies at serious risk of homelessness. We need to stand with the New American community by providing programs and services that create pathways to cultural integration, economic success, and prosperity.

We urge President Trump’s administration to examine the humanitarian, economic, and moral merits of the refugee admissions program and reinstate it as soon as possible. We call on our state and local officials to advocate for their communities, which have been enriched by the contributions of refugees.

About NICE: Nashville International Center for Empowerment is a 501(c)3 nonprofit refugee resettlement agency that has served our newest neighbors in Middle Tennessee for 20 years with basic essentials, education, and assistance with health, employment, and adjusting to life in their new communities.