PUBLIC TESTIMONY
Testimony by Halema Wali, Founding Co-Director of Afghans for a Better Tomorrow
3:56:57
·
130 sec
Halema Wali, representing Afghans for a Better Tomorrow, strongly opposes Mayor Adams' 30/60 day shelter stay limits for asylum seekers. She argues that these policies are inhumane, dangerous, and particularly harmful to children, urging for their rejection in favor of more compassionate and sustainable solutions.
- The organization has supported nearly 1200 asylum seekers in New York City, many of whom are Afghans fleeing persecution and devastation.
- Wali emphasizes that evicting families from shelters after brief stays forces them into homelessness and jeopardizes their health, safety, and future.
- She calls for investments in affordable permanent housing, language access, legal services, and workforce access to empower asylum seekers to contribute to the city's future.
Halema Wali
3:56:57
Good afternoon, and thank you for the opportunity to testify on mayor Adamson's 30 60 day shelter stay limits.
3:57:03
My name is Halima Wali, and I am the founding co director of Afghans for a better tomorrow, an Afghan led advocacy organization dedicated to systemic change for Afghans in the US and beyond.
3:57:14
I am here to strongly oppose these inhumane policies.
3:57:18
Since the end of 2022, our organization has supported nearly 1200 asylum seekers in New York City, many of whom are Afghans that flood famine, brutal persecution, and climate devastation, conditions created or worsened by US policies.
3:57:33
They arrived here seeking stability and safety, but now face eviction from shelters, a policy that is harsh, unjust, and retraumatizing.
3:57:42
1 Afghan father of 6, part of a persecuted religious and ethnic minority seeking asylum, asked us, why would they displace us all over again, force my girls to switch schools when we fled the only country in the world when my daughters are denied an education?
3:57:58
This policy is not just cruel, it's dangerous.
3:58:02
Evicting families from shelters after such brief stays forces them into homelessness and jeopardizes their health, safety, and future.
3:58:10
For children, the stakes are even higher.
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Disrupted schooling and deeper instability.
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These families don't want to remain in shelters where their children go malnourished due to inadequate food.
3:58:21
They want a fair chance to rebuild their lives.
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They want a fair but without time, resources, and pathways to permanent housing and employment, they're being set up to fail.
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New York City has long been a beacon of compassion and opportunity.
3:58:37
Upholding our right to shelter law and investing in affordable permanent housing, language access, legal services, and workforce access will not only protect these families, but also empower them to enrich our communities.
3:58:50
These new arrivals are motivated and ready to contribute to our city's vibrant, diverse future.
3:58:56
I urge the mayor and city council to reject these harmful limits and commit to humane sustainable solutions.
3:59:02
Together, we can ensure New York remains a city of hope and opportunity for all.
3:59:06
Thank you.
