Our partners at LIRS are making a call for help. If you would like to help, we invite you to consider making a donation of time, goods, or money.
VOLUNTEER
LIRS is calling for volunteers to support incoming Afghan Allies, Special Immigrant Visa holders, who are being evacuated to the United States. Afghan Allies are currently arriving in the following cities; however, we want to be ready to welcome these families wherever they go!
If you are able to volunteer your time to help with services like airport pick-ups, apartment set-ups, or bringing a meal, please sign-up using the button that represents your region or sign-up for the general stand-by list.
*The forms add you to a list of potential volunteers. Volunteers will be contacted on an as-needed basis. Not everyone who signs-up will be contacted to volunteer.
If you would like to learn more about the situation or consider other ways to help please see the LIRS website.
If you are in the greater Washington D.C. area and would like to attend a virtual Town Hall on August 26 hosted by Lutheran Social Services National Capital Area (LSSNCA), REGISTER HERE.
Official Statement on the Detention of Refugees and Ongoing Community Violence
With another death in Minnesota and continued violence toward individuals and groups standing up for their communities, we acknowledge the profound fear and uncertainty people are feeling--not just locally, but across the country.
On top of this, there are reports that refugees invited and admitted to our country through the U.S. Refugee Admission Program are now being detained, meaning that our new friends and neighbors feel that fear most acutely.
Refugees have already fled violence and persecution once. They came here legally, seeking safety. In moments like these, we reaffirm our commitment to building communities where refugees and immigrants can live without fear. Where they can go to work, send their children to school, and build lives of dignity and belonging.
We call for due process, accountability, and humanity in all immigration enforcement operations. We call upon our leaders to demand the demilitarization of our neighborhoods and cities. And we call on all of us to continue the work of welcoming and protecting those who have been forcibly displaced from their homes.