Letter to the Hon. Alejandro Mayorkas, Secretary of Homeland Security, and the Hon. Antony Blinken, Secretary of State - Letter Regarding Review Of The Special Immigrant Visa Program

Letter

Dear Secretary Mayorkas and Secretary Blinken:
The U.S. has long been an open and welcoming refuge to those fleeing persecution. As
you are aware, the Biden-Harris administration announced plans to fully withdraw U.S. troops
from Afghanistan this fall. Throughout the course of the United States' time there, we have
worked alongside Afghan civilians in their efforts as interpreters, engineers, security guards,
cultural advisors, and more. These Afghan civilians were critical to the United States' mission in
Afghanistan and must be included in our evacuation plan.

For this reason, we request that you immediately begin the process of reviewing the
Special Immigrant Visa (SIV) Program to ensure that it has the necessary resources to operate
effectively. We learned from SIV recipients and service providers of some unnecessary delays in
processing these applications. Immediately processing all pending applications should be a top
priority for the Department of Homeland Security. This would provide an evacuation plan to
some 17,000 Afghan civilians and their families who worked alongside our troops.

In addition to processing, we learned from service providers that there is a need to
provide financial assistance to SIV recipients, so that they can immediately purchase flights out
of Afghanistan or accommodate travel. By granting SIV status, the United States acknowledges
that the recipients and their families are in danger. When refugees travel to the U.S. or U.S.
citizens are stranded abroad, their flights are typically purchased with loans. Therefore, we ask
that SIV recipients be given access to financial services to promptly ensure their safe evacuation
from the country. The time spent waiting to obtain funds to purchase flight tickets or other means
of travel can prove deadly, and the United States should not risk the security of these civilians for
financial reasons, who have been invaluable to the United States' mission in Afghanistan.

The United States has a proud tradition of standing with our allies. Afghan nationals who
worked alongside U.S. troops did so knowing that they and their families would be at risk. As the
Biden-Harris administration works to withdraw our brave servicemembers from Afghanistan, we
must not forget about those who stood with them in their efforts.

We are grateful for your leadership on this issue, and we welcome the opportunity to
work more with you on this matter.