(Updated 2/6/2017)

On Thursday night, Feb. 2, an overflow crowd of an estimated 1,000 concerned individuals turned out on a brisk winter night to learn more about advocacy for refugees from the evangelical immigration and refugee agency, World Relief.

The advocacy rally took place at The Compass Church in Wheaton, Ill. Many have called Wheaton the heart of evangelical country with its esteemed Wheaton College. The rally appealed to a broad section of the public, from families with children to senior citizens.

The hour and a half session featured the WR’s DuPage/Aurora Executive Director, Susan Sperry, and her staff. They explained the nuances of the Jan. 27 refugee executive order for President Trump. The Obama administration had the limit of refugees at 110,000 for fiscal 2017 and the new order reduced it to 50,000. Some 32,000 are already in the pipeline. Some 70% of immigrant refugees have family in the U.S.

The evening began with Iraqi refugee immigrant Alhussein Al Saadi sharing about his hardship and the extensive vetting that he received.

WR leading expert on immigration and author Matt Soreans noted a CATO Institute study that since 1980 that three million refugee immigrants have come to the United States and not a single person has committed any crime that resulted in death. Death for lightning is more likely than from the hand of an refugee immigrant. The chance is 1 in 3.6 billion.

The rally also brought attention to an aspect not widely reported in the media, that being the part state and local officials will play in future oversight.

World Relief’s Midwest Regional Mobilizer, Liz Dong, highlighted some points of advocacy for the crowd. The points included 1) call, write, or meet your elected officials; 2) host a public event; 3) write an op-ed or letter to the editor; and 4) educate yourself and others – use WR resources and curricula and lift up with stories.

WR officials also felt that elected representatives should be praised when they do what is right.

Being a faith-based organization, WR’s Keith Draper closed the meeting with prayer and challenged all to be advocates, and not to forget to pray in this difficult time. He used a Scripture verse, Isaiah 59:15, as his basis for prayer.

A similar event is planned for Aurora on Feb. 15, 7 p.m., at Wesley United Methodist Church, 14 N. May St.
Individuals may sign an online petition at www.worldrelief.org/advocate.

XPian News is a new website, XPian.news, that is covering Aurora, Fox Valley, Chicago area, and national XPian (Christian) news.

John Ross

John Ross on Saturday, April 23, 2016 launched XPian News, a part of  Daybreak Communications, Inc. Ross is the facilitator of Aurora Christian Ministry Network (ACMN) and a member of the Fox Valley Christian Ministerial Alliance (FVCMA). He serves on the boards of Wayside Cross Ministries and the Kiwanis Club of Aurora. As a follower of Jesus, he has been for some 40 years a member of First Presbyterian Church - Aurora. He has an M.A. - Christian Leadership from Wheaton College Graduate School and undergraduate at Trinity International University.  editor@xpian.news