[Congressional Record Volume 165, Number 104 (Thursday, June 20, 2019)]
[House]
[Page H4927]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                           WORLD REFUGEE DAY

  (Ms. PINGREE asked and was given permission to address the House for 
1 minute and to revise and extend her remarks.)
  Ms. PINGREE. Mr. Speaker, I rise in recognition of World Refugee Day 
and in support of the community of refugees who have resettled in my 
district.
  One of these refugees is Kifah Abdulla, who lived in Baghdad until 
war broke out at home. He spent over 8 years as a prisoner of war. He 
was isolated because of his activism against the dictatorship.
  He was a refugee for 11 years in Amman, Jordan, and 5 years in the 
Netherlands, before coming to Portland, Maine in 2011. He is now an 
Arabic teacher, a published poet, a performer, and an activist.
  There is a reason America has signed international treaties and 
passed laws giving shelter to those fleeing persecution. Many refugees, 
like Mr. Abdulla, were jailed or tortured because they protested, 
organized, or challenged their government. These values are at the core 
of our Nation.
  Every year, refugees travel 1.2 billion miles in search of safety. 
And right now, we are in the midst of the greatest refugee crisis since 
World War II. Sadly, when people fleeing the violence need us most, the 
administration has dramatically reduced refugee admissions.
  In a Nation where nearly all of us have come ``from away,'' as we say 
in Maine, I urge us all to make our communities warm, safe, and 
welcoming to refugees across the globe.

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