The Taliban coup in Afghanistan has turned many residents into refugees. The Taliban have taken control over Kabul, the capital city. For many years now, the country has faced an intensified state of insecurity. Millions of Afghans are experiencing depression and hunger after the fall of the country’s economy. War and natural disasters in Afghanistan have made the Afghans flee their home and land to the neighboring state. The heartbreaking and horrifying images and videos have raised concern about how to help Afghan refugees. The refugees are clinging to the American plane to escape the coup. Most of them have applied for immigrant visas. The immigrant visas will enable them to run the coup as the Taliban has already taken over Kabul.
The Afghans fear assaults, especially towards the women and girls, and the return of sharia law under the Taliban government. The Taliban has managed to take the American weapons from the Afghan forces. Since the families escape with a few belongings, they need housing and food help. There are innumerable ways one can help the refugees. Some of the challenges immigrants face is:
- Lack of access to the social amenities
- Lack of access to education
- Food insecurity
- Early marriages and child labor
- Psychological trauma
- Inadequate housing
- Few employment opportunities
Here is an overview of the ways of helping the refugees
- Donate unused airline miles
The airline miles will help cater for the cost of an Afghan family flight to the new settlement. Payment of the flight will make it easier to transport the Afghans to their new home. Working with airlines and non-profit partners will help raise more capital to provide free flights. Airline miles will help immigrants approved to travel but cannot manage to pay for the flight.
- Contribute to the local resettlement organization or sign up as a volunteer
You can sign up as a volunteer to help the immigrants rebuild their lives. One can get involved in an organization in the community whose main aim is to rescue the immigrants. The organizations or groups are in search of donations of essential items. There are several databases where one can register as a volunteer to help. These databases include Refugee Council USA’s list of local resettlement agencies, Network agencies with the Committee for Refugees and immigrants, and Charity Navigator.
- Sign up to offer temporary housing
One can register to offer temporary housing as there is inadequate space to accommodate all the immigrants. There are numerous websites that one can visit and register to provide temporary housing. Donation of Airbnb stay is also a means of offering accommodation to the immigrants in a crisis. Donations towards someone’s holiday can help save someone from hazards such as floods.
- Offer jobs
Since the immigrants have lost their job, you can decide to offer them some jobs. Once the refugees have received employment authorization, you can offer them the jobs. They can increase the gross domestic product income (GDP) by utilizing the available resources. Employers with job vacancies can advertise on websites all types of posts available.
- Form a sponsor team to support the Afghan families
A group can even consist of five members willing to support the immigrants. The sponsor circles will be able to receive advice and guidance on what the immigrants require. The groups can help connect the children to schools, stock the pantry, and even find the initial housing. They can also provide the initial financial support, and the adults get employed.
- Join the welcome exchange forum
Businesspersons can join the welcome exchange forum to support Afghan immigrants. One can help meet the needs for baby essentials and even house supplies. The forum hosts need community organizations who have announced household furniture, personal hygiene products, and even diapers for the babies. It helps in making sure all the needs of the immigrants are met.
- Donate emergency medical care
Emergency medical care will help cater to the health of immigrants. Providing drugs will help cure some diseases, such as the common cold in winter. Vaccinations against infectious diseases such as covid-19 will help save the life of the immigrants. The state can set aside emergency trained doctors and nurses to cater to the health of the immigrants. The immigrants can overcome the trauma through counseling sessions with the refugees.
- Foster Afghan children
Foster families are urgently needed to support the increasing number of immigrant children. The individual seeking to foster the children should be certified by the relevant authority. Refugee children are most vulnerable during times of crisis. Everyone flees for their safety, forgetting about the welfare of the children. Foster families give them hope for a better life ahead. If any family needs to become a foster family, it can contact the agency responsible for that activity. Children can be secured in the refugee camps until a well-wisher comes to their rescue.
If the state has no refugee foster care services, the interested individual can also extend their help through donation contributions. One can also become a refugee child mentor if not in a position to become a parent. A refugee child mentor can decide to set some time aside to tutor the immigrant child.
The Afghan allies can help provide the essential support to the newly arrived people as they now have no place to call home. Necessities can also be channeled to the concerned authority. Providing support and compassion is an incredible way to show love to immigrants. Visiting them in the refugee camp is another sign of love as you will be able to provide social support.
Individuals can also help in advocating for the immigrants to get immediate help. Through support, you are showing empathy to the immigrants.
Wrapping up
In conclusion, there are many ways to reach out to immigrants. The above article gives an overview of some of the tracks. Humanitarian crises make the immigrants have a rough time; donating anything will help restore them to their everyday lives.