Posted by Ann Corcoran on May 13, 2016
That is the common refrain I hear from just about everywhere in America where refugees are being seeded into unsuspecting communities. What about our own people, our own poor and disabled, they ask.
The Vermont refugee program is run by the federal government through its contractor the US Committee for Refugees and Immigrants. As a Wilson-Fish state, elected state officials have no say over the program. USCRI and the feds call all the shots. USCRI is headed by Lavinia Limon who was Bill Clinton’s director of the federal Office of Refugee Resettlement. To learn more about Limon, go here:
For new readers we have been reporting on the controversy on-going in Rutland ever since the mayor told a surprised public that he had agreed that Rutland could take 100 Syrian (mostly Muslim) refugees. Seehere and here.
Here, at MyChamplainValley.com, we learned that a group of citizens protested the mayor last night.
My suggestion to those of you with concerns in Rutland is to contact the mayor of Manchester, NH, Ted Gatsos, and ask that he come and speak to your group or maybe send a delegation to New Hampshire and ask him how it’s going there. I am sure the Manchester mayor would advise Rutland to not open Pandora’s box because once the refugees begin coming there will be NO END TO IT. There will be many more than 100 in the end!
Thursday night, the Rutland community got the opportunity to learn more behind the plan to bring 100 Syrian refugees to the city this fall.
It’s a meeting Mayor Chris Louras held amidst controversy for not initially including the public in the decision.
“We do not have a TD Garden anywhere in the County of Rutland, and if I were to engage in a public and answer dialogue and a broad forum with everyone in the county invited, I would have to plan for a 65,000 capacity.” Louras said.
Before the meeting, about 20 people gathered outside Rutland Free Library with signs, showing their concern for a plan they say was a surprise. Matt Howland and David O’Brien expressed their opinions.
“The city is not just gonna roll over and take this without asking the hard questions, without holding people accountable and making them put forth the answers and making a plan and let the community know what’s going on,” Howland said.
Be sure to visit the site to watch the video!
By the way, the Boston Globe tells us there are no mosques in Rutland (yet!).
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