LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- Kentucky House and Senate Democratic leaders are urging the state to make room for Afghan refugees.
"I feel that it is a sense of urgency that we number one, get folks evacuated, but number two, they need to find a place to go," House Minority Leader Joni Jenkins said.
Jenkins, who represents District 44, was joined by State Sen. Morgan McGarvey at Kentucky Refugee Ministries on Sunday.
The Democratic representatives requested legislative leaders to have Kentucky open its doors to Afghan refugees after U.S. military forces withdrew from Afghanistan.
Khalilullah Sharifi, president of the Association of Afghan Immigrants of Kentucky, says fear is gripping his native country, forcing hundreds of thousands of people to flee.
"My soul is there, my heart is there and my mind is there, only I am living here," Sharifi said.
On Monday, Jenkins and McGarvey will mail a formal request to Gov. Andy Beshear and Kentucky's eight-member Congressional delegation.
McGarvey and Jenkins say the U.S. has a moral obligation to protect the Afghan refugees.
"Kentucky has long had a reputation of accepting people from around the world, particularly when they have been displaced due to political or military reasons," the request states. "This welcoming nature is part of who we are, and we have the opportunity to be leaders in this regard once again."
Semsudin Haseljic, Kentucky Refugee Ministries program leader and Wilson-Fish case manager, said Kentucky is in a strong position to resettle Afghan refugees.
"With well-established resettlement agencies in Louisville, Lexington, Bowling Green, Owensboro and soon to be in Covington, we are ready to respond to this humanitarian crisis," Haseljic said in a news release.
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