Update: In July 2023, a large bipartisan group of legislators reintroduced the Afghan Adjustment Act. In November 2023, Mormon Women for Ethical Government launched another call to action to let legislators know the AAA is still important to citizens and to encourage them to sign it into law by the end of the year in order to maintain national security, honor the sacrifices of our veterans, and fully welcome our new neighbors to our communities.
Our new Afghan neighbors are in limbo
Following the chaotic U.S. military withdrawal from Afghanistan in 2021, more than 130,000 Afghans were evacuated. Almost half of those evacuees were children. After significant vetting in third countries and military bases, Operation Allies Welcome (OAW) worked with local resettlement agencies and communities to bring approximately 70,000 of those evacuees here to the U.S. to live as our neighbors under the temporary status of humanitarian parole. Nearly two years later, tens of thousands of our new Afghan neighbors are still living in uncertainty and fear as they face the looming expiration of their legal status.
Though U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) recently announced the opportunity for Afghan parolees to apply for renewal of their temporary humanitarian parole, we still must call on Congress to pass these bills in order to give our Afghan neighbors the lasting status they need to continue rebuilding their lives.
Hope for the future
In August 2022, the Afghan Adjustment Act (AAA) was introduced in the House and Senate with strong bipartisan support, and we hope to see it reintroduced soon in the new 118th Congress. In June 2023, the complementary Afghan Allies Protection Act (AAPA) (S. 1786/H.R. 3808), which would renew and improve the Special Immigrant Visa (SIV) program, was introduced as well.
The AAA is similar to other adjustment legislation following past armed and humanitarian conflicts, such as the Vietnam War. It ensures Afghans we brought to safety may apply for lasting protection to continue to live and work in the U.S. Together with the AAPA, it also provides for improved policies to securely admit more Special Immigrant Visa (SIV) recipients and humanitarian parolees — particularly women and children — in order to help them escape Taliban rule and reunite with their families. Both bills will help maintain national security by demonstrating that the U.S. honors promises made to allies.
Take action
We need your help to let your legislators know the AAA is still important to you — as is the AAPA — and you want to see both signed into law as soon as possible.
Their passage will help maintain national security, honor the sacrifices of our veterans, and fully welcome our new neighbors to our communities.
Use this tool to let your legislators know you support these bills:
1. Enter your address 2. Follow the prompts to help you write and send a letter to your two senators and representative.
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