Afghans fear the return of Sharia law and violence, especially towards women, girls and the LGBTQ+ communities, as well as to those who worked with the United States, under the Taliban government. This fear is compounded by the fact that the Taliban now has American weapons from the Afghan forces. The Taliban has said that they will grant women’s rights “under the limits of Islam,” which, based on the militant group’s past history, understandably has many concerned. Meanwhile, the Pentagon announced its plans to evacuate between 5,000 and 9,000 Afghans from Kabul per day. It is estimated that 550,000 Afghans have been displaced by the conflicts. While it’s easy to feel helpless, there are ways to help Afghanistan refugees without putting yourself or more American troops at risk.
How to Help Afghanistan Refugees
Donate airline points and miles to help Afghanistan refugees evacuate.
Miles4Migrantsaccepts donations of airline points and miles, as well as monetary donations, to help Afghan families evacuate. They specified Chase, American Express (Amex) and Air Canada as especially useful.
Help Afghanistan refugees settle in new, safe homes.
Lutheran Social Servicesis focused on helping Afghan refugees settle in the United States. Donating funds, furniture, storage space and temporary housing will help these families tremendously as they begin to rebuild and begin a new life on extremely short notice. They are also seeking volunteers in the Tacoma, Wash.; Houston and Fort Worth, Texas; Delaware, Maryland and Virginia areas.
Donate to causes dedicated to helping Afghanistan refugees.
Afghan Learning Academyprovides education to Afghans in the Kandahar region, as well as emergency supplies, food, medical care and shelter. Afghanaidis providing emergency shelter, food and medical care to Afghans in crisis. Afghanistan: A Call for Urgent Helpis a fund from several charities combined to provide emergency aid to Afghans in dire need. Relief Internationalis helping Afghans evacuate to neighboring Iran. Enabled Children Initiativeprovides aid to disabled children in need in the Kabul area. International Rescue Committeehas pledged help for displaced families in Afghanistan. They aim to raise $10 million for the cause. Bob Kitchen, IRC’s Vice President of Emergencies, said in a statement, “The humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan continues to rapidly deteriorate as the situation in Kabul and the future of the country remains uncertain. The IRC is committed to staying and delivering urgent humanitarian aid. Without immediate action, 2021 will be the deadliest year of conflict for Afghans in over a decade. The severity of the situation brings new urgency to ensure all Afghans in need of aid can be reached — and yet the humanitarian response remains just 38% funded. It is vital that the international community recognize their duty to step up their support. The IRC is working to raise $10 million to ensure our teams can continue to deliver lifesaving aid across Afghanistan. This situation cannot go ignored. World leaders must show solidarity with the Afghan people and humanitarian organizations who are committed to serving them by scaling up funding and using their diplomatic muscle to ensure aid workers can continue to access communities in need.” Women for Women Internationalare aiding women and girls in crisis in Afghanistan. Sanitary Products for Displaced Afghan Womenprovides feminine hygiene products for women in the Kabul area. Urgent Crisis Relief for Afghanistanis a team effort from Children Without Bordersand the Watan Projectto raise emergency funds to help displaced, at-risk and evacuating Afghan families. Islamic Relief: Afghanistanis aiding efforts for Afghans stricken by famine and forced to leave their homes. The Jalala Foundationestablished funding to aid Afghan women and children in need. Prince Charles’ Turquoise Mountainset up a special fund specifically for emergency Afghanistan aid. Rukhshana Mediahelps protect and pay female journalists and writers in Afghanistan who may be especially at risk under Taliban rule as the crisis continues to unfold.
To help Afghanistan refugees, vote wisely and put pressure on your representatives.
Ahead of the next election at your local, state and federal level, examine candidates carefully to ensure their foreign policy platform aligns with your beliefs. You can use this pre-written letter to write to your representatives to put pressure on them to properly care for refugees from Afghanistan. Next, need to switch your brain to happier thoughts? These 250 quotes will help uplift you when it feels like the entire world is on fire.
