'You are welcome here': Salt Lake County event offers support to Afghanistan refugees

Salt Lake County Mayor Jenny Wilson on Aug. 10, 2021. She and the Salt Lake County Office for New Americans held a resource fair for Afghanistan refugees on Thursday.

Salt Lake County Mayor Jenny Wilson on Aug. 10, 2021. She and the Salt Lake County Office for New Americans held a resource fair for Afghanistan refugees on Thursday. (Scott G Winterton, Deseret News)


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SALT LAKE CITY — Mothers, grandmothers and children in strollers lined up at tables, smiling as they received emergency kits in brightly colored bags. The Afghanistan refugees walked between booths displaying resources to help them obtain library cards, health care access, and knowledge about Utah's parks and outdoor recreation.

After the U.S. military disengaged its troops from Afghanistan in May of 2021, Utah was one of the first states to open its arms to the Afghanistan immigrants that came flooding into the country.

Now, over 900 refugees have made Utah their home, with over 550 residing in Salt Lake County, according to Katy Fleury, a brand manager for the Salt Lake County Mayor's Office.

But even two years after the disengagement, resources for the refugees are needed now more than ever.

That's why Salt Lake County Mayor Jenny Wilson and the Salt Lake County Office for New Americans hosted the Emergency Kit Distribution and Resource Fair for Afghanistan refugees on Thursday, where hundreds of immigrants could collect kits filled with food, feminine hygiene products, flashlights and emergency items and infant care materials.

Joseph Genda, the New American and Refugee liaison with the Salt Lake County Mayor's Office, said there has been an increase of Afghanistan children that are immigrating to the country, some coming with only the clothes on their backs.

As Genda saw the massive influx of immigrants since 2021, he said he knew that the Office of New Americans would need a grant to better provide resources to the refugees.

"We also have to create a platform for them, 'You are welcome here' — it is really very necessary. We might not know why they are fleeing their countries, but when they get here, we have to create an environment for them to be successful as well," Genda said.

And in 2022, the Office of New Americans received $150,000 from Operation Afghan Refugee Support to provide money to the refugees for any education, legal and immigration fees, and projects like the emergency kit distribution.

"We've worked really closely with the representatives within the Afghan community to support them, and we've been incredibly involved in finding housing and supporting the transition of these community members here in Salt Lake County," Wilson said. "And this is just another step we can provide a few more resources and make sure giving people (that) have been here for a little bit of time now, many of them, that nothing is slipping through the cracks."

The Asian Association of Utah, Salt Lake City, Utah Refugee Center, International Resource Committee, Spice Kitchen Incubator, Catholic Community Services, and the Good Samaritan Foundation also partnered with the Office for New Americans to make the event possible.

The event has been a work in progress for nine months, according to Mariah Espinal, constituent liason with the Salt Lake County Mayor's Office.

"It has definitely built into something a lot larger than we ever expected it to be," Espinal said. "We really wanted to make this project worthwhile and important for the community and those who would be receiving them."

A daughter of an immigrant herself, Espinal noted how there is a pride to coming to America and "making things work" — but also how sometimes, it can be exceptionally difficult to find and obtain resources.

"As we make more resources known and available, people don't have to fight so hard just to make the bare minimum," Espinal said. "I think that that's such an important part of these resource areas — is allowing people to know that there are so many resources and help and privileges about being here in the county that they can take advantage of."

Espinal also said that when she was putting together the emergency kits, she saw a significant lack of resources for women's health — which is why she made sure menstrual cups were included in each bag.

Afghan women are especially affected by the poverty associated with immigrating to a new country, according to Samira Harnish, executive director of Women of the World.

"Poverty is very challenging for our ladies," Harnish said. "The lack of acceptance in society from bigotry is another big challenge."

Wilson encouraged those living not just in Salt Lake County, but across Utah, to recognize the challenges that refugees from Afghanistan face and to be a welcoming neighbor to them, despite any language or cultural barriers.

"I think that sometimes language barriers can feel like a barrier. But a smile is a universal, welcoming language and I think of us being as neighbors, friendly one to another, regardless of who your neighbor is, is really important in this era," Wilson said. "I think just engagement, being the neighbor who knocks on the door just to say, 'How can I help?' and being aware of all of those — there's just simple steps that we can take as Utahns that are really important."

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Kris Carpenter is a student at Utah State University in Logan, Utah.

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