Greensboro's refugee community worried about upcoming election

The recent language against immigrants and refugees who come to the U.S. has left a number of people worried about their future after Election Day.

But in Greensboro, refugees and immigrants are ready to make their voices heard among the anti-immigrant and refugee rhetoric by showing up at the polls.

Church World Service in Greensboro has hosted several workshops and events centered around voting.

The nonprofit resettlement agency was founded in 1946 and has been in Greensboro since 2009. It has several sites throughout the state including Durham.

Megan Shepard is the Greensboro site's education coordinator for their immigration program. She said the refugee and immigrant community already faced scrutiny under former President Donald Trump's administration.

"What I find so heartbreaking is that there is this negative rhetoric and that is not welcoming at all,” Shepard said. "I don't believe that those are the core values of the country that we live in. I just don't think that that reflects our values in this country because we are a nation of immigrants."

Under Trump’s administration, the number of refugees coming to the U.S. plummeted due to a cap on how many could come to the country. Only 15,000 were admitted in 2021. The Biden administration soon lifted that cap.

“Under previous administrations and anti-refugee, anti-immigrant policies that it was really harmful to refugees and immigrants who were here,” Shepard said. “It kept families separated for longer periods of time.”

Shepard said they've been working with newly naturalized citizens to make sure they vote and encourage others to do so as well.