INSTANT IMPACT
November 18, 2015
The Times misidentifies Whitney in ballot
November 18, 2015
The murderous rampage attributed to Islamic State extremists that claimed 129 lives in Paris has sparked fear and loathing in the Bayou Region, as residents try to make sense of viral Internet posts containing information about resettlement of Syrian refugees.
Reports that one of the participants in Friday’s Paris attacks had a Syrian passport has raised fears locally, as well as throughout the nation.
An executive order signed Monday by Gov. Bobby Jindal intended to block resettlement of Syrians in the Louisiana under federal refugee relief programs has drawn cheers from some local quarters.
Federal officials confirm that 14 individuals have been resettled in Kenner and New Orleans this year, under a relief program operated by Catholic Charities of the New Orleans Archdiocese.
The Houma-Thibodaux Diocese, whose jurisdiction includes Terrebonne and Lafourche, has not thus far been engaged in any resettlement of Syrians to date, said spokesman Louis Aguirre.
“There have been none to my knowledge,” said Aguirre, who checked with Bishop Shelton Fabre and local Catholic Charities director Rob Gorman.
New Orleans television station WWL-TV, in response to a request to the U.S. Department of State, was told Sunday that 14 people from Syria altogether have been resettled in Louisiana this year. One was in Baton Rouge, seven in Kenner and six in New Orleans, the station was told.
President Barack Obama has agreed to a plan that would allow up to 10,000 people fleeing the violence in Syria to relocate in the U.S. That plan does not say which states might be considered for the scatter-site settling.
Jindal’s executive order directs all state departments to “utilize all lawful means to prevent the resettlement of Syrian refugees in the State” and requires the State Police “upon receiving information of a Syrian refugee already relocated within the State of Louisiana, are authorized and directed to utilize all lawful means to monitor and avert threats within the State.”
Comments from a variety of local voices on social media platforms show support for Jindal’s position; Nicole Lirette, a Houma landscaper, has extensively posted on her Facebook page, The Buzz, an appeal for people to call the Louisiana federal delegation to request a halt to Syrians being relocated to Louisiana.
Asked for her response to Jindal’s order by The Times, she said “it’s nice to see at least some of our government officials have a pair.”
Other conversations with local residents have shown many to be conflicted o the question of welcoming the refugees.
Susan Gautreaux Gray of Houma, whose family has aided resettlement efforts in the past of refugees from Kosovo, followed Lirette’s suggestion and called Washington to voice her disapproval of the settlement program.
In an interview, she described the difficult of balancing fear with compassion.
“I know all the Syrians are not evil, wicked people, but I am afraid for our country,” said Gray, who has a floral and catering business. “Citizens have been discussing the refugee issue in the Houma area for quite a while now and voicing concerns because of terrorism. After what happened in Paris it was like somebody has thrown gas on the fire and everyone is afraid now. I am afraid we are going to have war on American soil, we can attacked.”
Jindal, and other governors who have issued orders or made statements rejecting the federal government’s resettlement program, have gotten the attention of civil liberties advocates.
Marjorie Esman, director of the ACLU of Louisiana, said the executive order is clearly unconstitutional.
“It violates the general principles of interstate travel and federal sovereignty,” Esman said. “One of the issues is that immigration is exclusively a matter of federal law and states have no legal authority. To say that people who are approved federally cannot come into the state is to blame refugees for what it is they are escaping is kind of blaming the victims. To stereotype anyone as terrorists is the kind of racial and ethnic profiling that runs counter to law.”
Asked about what role the Louisiana State Police might play in carrying out Jindal’s order Lt. J.B. Slaton said the agency’s Fusion Center consistently monitors potential threats in Louisiana, “maintaining a level of situational awareness through all federal, state and local channels.” •
