This past Thursday, Sept. 26, the College hosted two guest speakers to discuss refugee policies under the Obama and Trump administrations. The first speaker was Anne C. Richard, who worked at the Peace Corps as Vice President of the International Rescue Committee, as Assistant Secretary of State for the Obama administration, and currently serves as the Linowitz Professor of International Affairs at Hamilton.

The second speaker, Shelly Callahan, works in nearby Utica as the Executive Director of the Mohawk Valley Resource Center for Refugees.

Richard began the talk by describing her position as Assistant Secretary of State, specifically her work with refugees. She said her three main roles were to manage overseas aid, diplomacy, and to resettle refugees. When President Obama took office, the number of refugees allowed in the United States was 70,000; this number later rose to 85,000. Before Obama left office, the number peaked at 110,000. President Trump, on the other hand, has lowered that number to 18,000 for the coming fiscal year.

Richard discussed the demands of her position as Assistant Secretary of State and how the ever-changing political world only emphasized a seemingly endless list of conflicts. Richard said she felt that no matter what refugee myth she would disprove, another excuse was ready in wait. She called this the “American tradition” of being afraid to welcome in the next wave of immigrants.

Callahan began her portion of the talk by discussing the importance of refugees in Utica. An influx of refugees from nations like Bosnia, Burma, Russia, and Nepal has revitalized a city that was in crisis due to a declining population in the 1980s and 1990s. Today, Callahan said, refugees make up at least 25 percent of Utica’s population.

Callahan was passionate about her belief that people should be thanking refugees, not criminalizing them. Under Obama, she said, the relationship between refugees and the State Department was what she called a “partnership” rather than “adversarial” like it can seem today. She added that resettlement centers welcomed the increased refugee quotas under Obama, especially since employers were facing a shortage of workers and were glad to welcome additions to the labor force. This is no longer the case with the Trump administration.

Callahan mentioned that the greatest obstacle to welcoming refugees to America under the Trump administration is how “the ground is constantly shifting,” making it almost impossible to plan for the future. As a result, resettlement centers throughout the country are far less utilized than they were under Obama.

Callahan said Trump encourages hate speech against refugees, which provides incentive for the public to do the same. Still, she expressed gratitude that New York State is in a position to “put some skin in the game,” and through her and her colleagues’ efforts, her agency has earned a $2 million grant for their work.

Callahan concluded by sharing that immigration to Utica is not a new trend; in the early 20th century, 30 percent of Utica’s residents were foreign born.

After both of the speeches, students and faculty had the opportunity to ask questions of the speakers. Asked what advice she would give to students interested in working on issues related to refugees, Richard encouraged students to take the foreign service exam, saying it is a chance to give back to the community and could pave paths to other interesting organizations.

One student asked both speakers to compare current refugee policies to that of the Bush presidency, to which Richard and Callahan noted that this topic has only recently become controversial. Before Trump, they said, refugee policies had bipartisan support.

A resounding theme from the discussion was Richard and Callahan’s call to action. Both are passionate about refugee aid and said they want students on the Hill to consider reaching out and helping in any way possible.

They outlined a list of actions students can take, such as writing to their elected representative, volunteering at the center, reaching out to relatives in different states, and writing letters to the editors of newspapers and asking them to increase their coverage on this topic.