Link to ILPS-US post
The devastation of the 20-year US Imperialist war in Afghanistan is intensifying the latest massive forced migration in the region. The millions of refugees right now fleeing Afghanistan into neighboring Pakistan, Iran and other countries is the most recent and clearest example of the imperialist root cause of today’s forced migration of hundreds of millions all around the world.
According to ILPS-US, “During the 20 year war, the U.S. spent around $2 trillion, lost thousands of troops, and killed tens of thousands of Afghan civilians, and caused displacement of around 4 million Afghans, while keeping its refugee resettlement numbers exceptionally low.”
Millions of Afghans were already violently internally displaced by the decades-long U.S. war and occupation and by the oppression of local puppets and reactionaries and their foreign supporters, and now millions more Afghans will be forced to leave their homeland in even greater numbers.
“By the end of 2020, more than 2.6 million Afghans are refugees abroad. Afghan refugees are the third-largest displaced population in the world, and the vast majority of them are living in Pakistan (1.4 million) and Iran (780,000).”
See the ILPS-US #MovementMondays post for more background on the current situation, and stand with the Afghan people to demand that the U.S. be held accountable for its primary role in this latest refugee crisis.
The U.S. can not get away with the devastation that it has caused in Afghanistan while offering an anemic refugee resettlement program, including too-little, too-late talks with third countries to host the millions of Afghan refugees, while it processes a limited number of Special Immigrant and P2 (artist and entertainer exchange) visas to the United States, prioritizing Afghan supporters of U.S. operations in the country.
“During a meeting with the ILPS Commission on War and Peace, members from Pakistan shared that the Pakistan-Afghanistan border is experiencing a huge influx of Afghan migrants, further emphasizing the disparity in the role that Western nations, fueled by anti-immigration policies and rhetoric, play in refugee resettlement. Initially, Biden kept Trump’s historically low U.S. refugee cap of 15,000, but recently raised it to 62,500, after outrage from progressives and organizers.”
IMA-USA stands with the people of Afghanistan, Afghan refugees and all peoples displaced by imperialism and local reaction, and the progressive communities around the world to demand:
Justice and Immediate Relief for Afghan Refugees and Displaced Peoples!
End the Root Cause of Forced Migration! Down with U.S. Imperialism!
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