The university expels immigrants from the dorms

The State University of New York at Buffalo, New York in the United States evicted 44 immigrants from their dorms after parents raised concerns about the students’ safety, according to Buffalo News.

University officials quickly made a decision, as two immigrants were charged with sexual assault. This worried the parents of the students.

The school had previously had an agreement with the Jericho Road Community Health Center to house immigrants in dormitories from May to August, as local shelters filled up. The agreement would have allowed the migrants to be housed until February.

In a statement, the university’s acting president, Bonita R. Durand, never referred to the two alleged sexual assaults.

“As we welcome our students back to campus on Tuesday, we wanted to ensure the best possible learning environment for our students and the smooth running of our academic operations,” said Bonita Durand.

She added, “I have made the difficult decision to end the revocable permit and want to reassure our university community that when our students return to campus on Tuesday, they will find the learning and living environment they expect.”

Of the 44 asylum seekers affected by the decision, 32 came from Africa, including Congo and Nigeria. Others come mainly from Colombia, Haiti and the Dominican Republic.

Prejudgments

The founder of the community center that bears his name, Jericho Road, lamented the university’s decision, which he called “discriminatory.”

“We live in a society of prejudices,” he said. I am compelled to denounce this discriminatory decision. Asylum seekers are human beings just like you and me.”

For her part, an immigrant from Sudan confirmed that the university’s decision endangers her future.

“We don’t know where we’re going,” said Josephine Amuna Loki. It’s so stressful! I’m afraid we’ll end up on the street.”