In: asylum
Voice of San Diego
February 18, 2025
President Donald Trump froze the federal funding that allowed resettlement agencies to support newly arrived refugees. Michael Hopkins, CEO of Jewish Family Service of San Diego, said that his organization received a stop work order and is fundraising to support the 22 recently arrived families in its care. That includes a family of six from Afghanistan who arrived the day before the stop work order, Hopkins said. The father of the family had worked with the U.S. military, he said.
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Times of San Diego
February 16, 2025
Faced with a halt in federal funding and the closing of the border to refugees, Jewish Family Service of San Diego is shutting down its shelter and shifting focus to legal support of asylum seekers.
CEO Michael Hopkins said in a statement received Saturday that following the Trump administration’s suspension of the CBP One smartphone asylum-filing application on Jan. 20, no refugee individuals or families have been released to the shelter. In addition, $22 million in promised federal funding has not been received, leading to future layoffs of the shelter staff.
“While there are no longer individuals or families seeking asylum released from short term federal immigration custody to our shelter services, we are seeing increased needs for immigration legal assistance and other social service supports to vulnerable San Diegans,” Hopkins added.
The San Diego Union-Tribune
February 15, 2025
Jewish Family Service said that once the layoffs are finalized in April — the law requires 60 days notice for mass layoffs — it will cease operations of its San Diego Rapid Response Network migrant shelter services. The organization said in a statement that its transition shelter — which provided medical screenings, food, case management, legal support and travel coordination — has received no new migrants since Inauguration Day, when the Trump administration ended use of the CBP One app.The organization also said it has not received any of the $22 million it was awarded last year by the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s Shelter and Services Program.
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Times of San Diego
February 2, 2025
In this Op-Ed by Jewish Family Service CEO Michael Hopkins, he discusses the agency’s longtime commitment to Welcoming the Stranger and why it is important to look at refugees on the human level. Hopkins writes, “Immigration is a controversial topic these days, but let’s break it down to the human level. Specifically, I’d like to talk about refugees, who are the most vetted group of displaced people allowed into the U.S. with a clear legal pathway to citizenship. Refugees, half of whom are children, have been forced to flee their home country because of persecution, war or violence. Their lives are at risk, and they have nowhere else to turn.” Hopkins continues to share a story of an Ahmad, who worked with the U.S. military in Afghanistan “Our values are unwavering. We know that assisting families like Ahmad’s and the 21 others in our care is the right thing to do. JFS will continue to meet the moment in partnership with the community.”
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ABC 7
June 14, 2024
While thousands of people seeking asylum in the U.S. wait in shelters in Mexico, hundreds who have already been granted the opportunity to begin that process through the CBP One app have found a safe landing place at the San Diego Rapid Response Network migrant shelter operated by Jewish Family Service of San Diego. Read the story of one family who escaped political persecution and found safety at the SDRRN migrant shelter.
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ABC 10 News
October 3, 2023
A nonprofit called Miles4Migrants is turning donated points into free flights for asylum seekers who’ve arrived at the U.S.-Mexico border in south San Diego County. “Our sense is that 98% of individuals actually have a point of contact or loved one outside of San Diego that they’re looking to connect with,” said Kate Clark, Senior Director of Immigration Services at Jewish Family Service of San Diego. Donate miles today by clicking here.
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The San Diego Union-Tribune
May 24, 2023
“Our immigration system is broken,” says Kate Clark, JFS’s Senior Director of Immigration Services, as she calls on the public to hold elected officials accountable for rebuilding the immigration system. The Border Patrol recently created a horrific humanitarian situation, detaining hundreds of migrants between the border fences. San Diego Rapid Response Network (SDRRN) Migrant Shelter Services, which is operated by JFS, stands ready to continue to help asylum seekers, despite restrictive new border policies imposed by the Biden Administration after Title 42 was lifted on May 11.
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KPBS
May 19, 2023
Humanitarian groups, including Immigrants Defenders Law Center and the American Friends Service Committee, are calling attention to what they call human rights violations by the Customs and Border Protection (CBP). Since the lifting of Title 42 border restrictions, the San Diego Rapid Response Migrant Shelter Service, which is operated by JFS, has seen as many as five times more migrants per day than average, according to JFS’s Kate Clark, Senior Director of Immigration Services. Clark says JFS is coordinating the processing of asylum-seekers with federal partners, including the Department of Homeland Security.
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Times of San Diego
February 23, 2023
The San Diego Rapid Response Network (SDRRN), a coalition of humanitarian organizations led by Jewish Family Service, is condemning a new Biden Administration proposal that will deport asylum seekers who enter the country illegally, or who did not first seek protection in the countries they passed through. “What the administration has announced today is essentially an asylum ban — a reprehensible step backwards,” the coalition said. “Asylum seekers are not the enemy; our broken immigration system is.”
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Associated Press
December 21, 2022
JFS’ Kate Clark, senior director for immigration services, was interviewed about current uncertainties surrounding Title 42, and how looming legal changes will affect asylum seekers in the near future. Lack of information has led to rumors, confusion, and doubts about the government’s readiness to respond.
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