Syrian Refugees In Sacramento Thankful For Opportunity To Come to United States
SACRAMENTO (CBS13) — Syrian refugees living in Sacramento say America should allow more people like them to come to America, as governors in more than half the states in the nation say otherwise.
Sacramento County is home to the most Syrian refugees with 63.
From inside his home, Muhammad Dawarah and his wife show photos of his brother and his 8-year-old nephew. Both were killed in the Syrian civil war he and his wife fled with their five children. They are thankful for the United States Syrian refugee program.
"The moment was when there was heavy aerial bombardment and everyone was trapped in a room and everyone thought they were going to die," he said.
Now, in the aftermath of an attack in Paris that left more than 100 dead, Speaker of the House Paul Ryan is seeking to temporarily halt Syrian refugees from entering the United States after one of the gunmen in the attack appeared to have a Syrian passport.
An American intelligence official, however, is among those casting doubt on the claim, telling CBS News the passport found didn't have the correct numbers for a Syrian passport, nor did the picture match the name.
On the day he announced his run for Congress, Sacramento County Sheriff Scott Jones said he was concerned about the federal government's process for vetting Syrian refugees.
RELATED: Sacramento Sheriff Questions Process Of Bringing Syrian Refugees To California
"If I'm concerned, and I'm charged with the safety of everybody in this county, then they need to stand up and take notice that everyone else is concerned," he said.
Debra DeBondt is the executive director for Opening Doors, the Sacramento nonprofit that helps place refugees in the region.
"For someone to be allowed into the U.S. refugee program, they must go through layers of security checks, background checks, and they are so fully vetted; they're better vetted than any other immigrants that come to the United States," she said.
