February - Nimco's Arrival
Four-and-a-half-year-old Nimco was finally reunited with her parents in Columbus on January 21st after four years of separation. Here is a brief glimpse of this family’s story:
Nimco's mother, Deman, fled Somalia in 2011. She lived in an Ethiopian refugee camp for five years. She married Mohamed, Nimco’s father. Deman and Mohamed applied for and were approved for resettlement in late 2015. The final processing of their case continued into 2016. In the meantime, Nimco was born. Mohamed had a severe health condition that was worsening, to the point that his survival was in question. They were finally scheduled for departure, but their newborn daughter was not yet part of their resettlement case. They faced an excruciating choice: delay their departure for an unknown period and try to add Nimco to the case, or go immediately to the U.S. to seek life-saving treatment for Mohamed, leaving Nimco behind and applying as soon as they arrived for her to join them. The political climate at that time was especially significant: Mohamed and Deman were booked to travel on November 29, 2016, notably, after the election of Donald Trump, who pledged to shut down travel to the US for Muslims, but before his inauguration, at which point he could (and did) carry out that pledge. Waiting to add Nimco to the resettlement case could mean completely jeopardizing their opportunity in a Trump-era of refugee resettlement (and in hindsight, it likely would have). Deman and Mohamed decided they had to go to the US to save Mohamed’s life. They placed Nimco in the care of relatives and planned to have Nimco join them as soon as she was allowed. Sadly, that was four whole years ago.
Since her parents’ departure in 2016, Nimco has been living with relatives in the Ethiopian refugee camp, waiting to be reunited with her parents. With the many anti-refugee policies enacted by the Trump Administration, Nimco's case was agonizingly drawn out. Last March, after clearing her screenings, three-year-old Nimco was finally ready to come to the U.S., but her departure was halted when the COVID-19 pandemic stopped all refugee resettlement. One more barrier preventing this family’s reunification. Deman said that she had to remain patient, but she was concerned about the health of Nimco. Nimco was forced to stay in the Ethiopian refugee camp to weather out the pandemic until it was safe to travel again.
Deman and Mohamed were able to speak to her on the phone during this waiting period, and Deman constantly worried about her young daughter's situation. Nimco and her grandmother had to make several challenging trips from the refugee camp to the Embassy for further processing. Many people in many organizations worked hard to make Nimco’s arrival happen. Finally, the day after President Biden's inauguration, Nimco arrived in Columbus and was swept up in her mother’s arms. Nimco and her parents cannot get those four years back. We hope the future brings the opportunity to heal and build positive memories.
There are still many family reunification cases like Nimco’s waiting to be approved. On February 4th, President Biden signed the "Executive Order on Rebuilding and Enhancing Programs to Resettle Refugees and Planning for the Impact of Climate Change on Migration," and a huge step forward for these families. CRIS is eager to work with the Biden Administration to reunite all the families who suffered from prolonged, unnecessary separation. We are eager to celebrate with them and welcome many more people like Nimco into our community.