Reps Speier, Lieu, Sherrill Lead Letter to President Biden Urging Immediate Evacuation of At-Risk Afghan Women

Press Release

Rep. Jackie Speier (CA-14), Rep. Ted Lieu (CA-33), and Rep. Mikie Sherrill (NJ-11) led 64 Members of Congress in sending a letter to President Biden today urging his Administration to prioritize the immediate evacuation of Afghan women, in addition to U.S. citizens and Special Immigrant Visa (SIV) holders, applicants, and their families, from Afghanistan. The letter requested that President Biden issue humanitarian parole to vulnerable Afghan women; expand the Priority 2 refugee designation to include Afghan women civil servants, journalists, judges, activists, human rights defenders, and others vulnerable to Taliban attacks; work with regional partners to establish transit centers to aid in the rapid evacuation of at-risk populations; and prioritize Afghan women for Priority 1 refugee status.

"The majority of Afghan women have never experienced firsthand the brutal restrictions on women's rights under Taliban rule, and in the past decade, Afghan women and girls have made immense gains. Earlier this year as many as 3.5 million girls were in school, and life expectancy for women increased by approximately 10 years since 2001," said Rep. Speier, Co-Chair of the Democratic Women's Caucus. "Our immediate priority must be to evacuate Afghan women who have targets on their backs. We don't have a moment to lose. These are the women who, for the past twenty years, have worked to advance America's democratic values in Afghanistan at grave personal risk. The U.S. conducted similar airlift operations before to protect Kurdish civilians under threat from Saddam Hussein, and we can do it again. Our allies and partners stand ready and willing to assist in this effort, and I urge the President to act immediately to protect and support Afghan women leaders."

"Afghan women and girls are particularly vulnerable to Taliban-wrought violence, which is why the U.S. must do everything it can to help them seek refuge," said Rep. Lieu. "In the last 20 years, Afghan women have risked their lives to fight for equal rights through their roles as civil servants, reporters and activists. When I served on active duty in the Air Force in the 1990s, I participated in Operation PACIFIC HAVEN to evacuate Kurds fleeing Saddam Hussein to Andersen AFB in Guam. We did so without requiring completed paperwork, and then did the processing in Guam. Many of those civilians had championed democratic values and supported the United States. We owe Afghan women and girls the same protection and I am pleased to join Congresswoman Speier and our other colleagues in pushing the Biden Administration to do this."

"Over the past 20 years, the United States has trained and supported countless Afghan women in their fight for their rights, and they've made tremendous progress," said Rep. Sherrill. "These trailblazers have paved the way for millions of girls to go to school and for women to fully participate at every level of Afghan society, which has put their lives at risk. Their bravery has made them a target for the Taliban's violence and oppression. The US must do everything we can to ensure their safety. I'm proud to join Rep. Speier and Rep. Lieu to call for immediate action."

In July, Congresswomen Jackie Speier (CA-14), Lois Frankel (FL-21) and Brenda Lawrence (MI-14), Co-Chairs of the Democratic Women's Caucus, and Congresswomen Veronica Escobar (TX-16) and Sylvia Garcia (TX-29), Vice Chairs of the Democratic Women's Caucus, Congressman Ted Lieu (CA-33) and Congressman Jason Crow (CO-06) introduced legislation to expand access to the U.S. refugee system for certain vulnerable Afghans. The Improving Access for Afghan Refugees Act designates Afghans who are particularly at risk of persecution, including human rights defenders, civil servants, officials, journalists, women activists, and judicial workers, as a Priority 2 group of special humanitarian concern for the purposes of refugee processing.

The full text of the letter is here.

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