All posts by Omar Bah

Refugee Dream Center Appoints Teddi Jallow as New Executive Director

by Omar Bah PRESS RELEASES
4:35 PM, 2/11/2022 Refugee Dream Center Appoints Teddi Jallow as New Executive Director

Providence, 2/11/22. Refugee Dream Center announced today that Ms. Teddi Jallow has been appointed new Executive Director of the organization. As Co-founder and Director of Partnerships and Community Building, Teddi will succeed her husband, Dr. Omar Bah.

Dr. Omar Bah stepped down from the role of Executive Director in order to focus on his campaign for Rhode Island’s 2nd Congressional District seat now that US Representative James R. Langevin has announced he won’t seek re-election this year. The Refugee Dream Center board of directors, on Tuesday February 8, 2022, voted unanimously to appoint Jallow as executive director. Bah will be tasked with a different role as Director of Programs.

Originally from The Gambia, Teddi Jallow arrived in Rhode Island as a refugee in 2009 and together with Bah, established the Refugee Dream Center in 2015. The Center which serves refugees from all over the world has seen tremendous growth since its inception, currently serving 2,600 refugees. As Director of Partnership and Community Building, Jallow tirelessly worked to strengthen the capacity, building a strong network among the various refugee ethnic communities while at the same time supervising the organization’s case management department.

“I am grateful to be a part of the lives of so many refugees in RI and help them succeed in their journey in a new country,” says Jallow.

The Refugee Dream Center is a post resettlement refugee agency. It offers services targeting gaps within the refugee community by ensuring continuation of services in their efforts towards self-sufficiency and integration. The RDC is also a strong advocacy agency for the rights of refugees

Biden administration moves to restore refugee admission program

by Omar Bah PRESS RELEASES

                           

After four years of a historically low refugee admissions ceiling in American history,  President Biden announced his plan to raise the cap on refugees allowed to resettle in the United States. Refugee admissions will increase to a total of 125,000 persons for the first fiscal year of the Biden-Harris administration starting October 1st, 2021.

“Today, I’m approving an executive order to begin the hard work of restoring our refugee admissions program to help meet the unprecedented global need… It’s going to take time to rebuild what has been so badly damaged,” Biden said. 

The Refugee Dream Center strongly supports this executive order and presidential calls to action. In the midst of a critical time when global resettlement is at its lowest, President Biden’s action will save lives. We applaud the Biden-Harris administration for moving towards restoring the US resettlement program. The Refugee Dream Center encourages other countries to also continue expanding their resettlement programs as refugees face life-threatening circumstances.

Hear from our Executive Director:

“Refugees across the world have endured, with patience, the consequences of a very harsh policy in the last four years. It is a great relief to know that their pain will not only be alleviated, but that the hope and trust they had in the United States will also be restored. We therefore thank the Biden Administration for this historic decision.”

 

Dr. Omar Bah,

Executive Director & Co-founder

Statement of Solidarity- Rohingya Refugee Crisis

by Omar Bah PRESS RELEASES

We Stand with the Rohingya Refugees

 

The Refugee Dream Center firmly joins the global outcry against the relocation of Rohingya refugees to the remote, flood-prone island of Bhasan Char by the government of Bangladesh. This is a reprehensible act, risking the lives of up to a million Rohingya refugees, who have been uprooted and mercilessly persecuted by the government of Myanmar. 

According to Ahmed Mukta, the lead architect of the resettlement site, this new home will be a “paradise” for the Rohingya. This could not be further from the truth. Bhasan Char is a previously uninhabited island that emerged from the sea less than 20 years ago. Over 300 refugees have already been relocated to the island against their will and none are allowed to leave. The low-lying island often becomes partially submerged during monsoon season and is highly vulnerable to cyclones.

 

This relocation has been short-sighted, inhumane and births a series of human rights concerns. Will refugees be denied freedom to move, have access to education, reliable medical care, and a sustainable livelihood? Without an appropriate assessment of this inhabited and flood prone island, this forced relocation is nothing short of an international human rights violation.

We strongly condemn this decision and invite everyone in our community to actively denounce these atrocities.

Hear from our Executive Director:

“I urge the government of Bangladesh to change their decision. These are among the most vulnerable human beings on Earth that need protection rather than being relegated and relocated into areas that are inhabitable even for animals. It is unfortunate that this is happening before our eyes. I urge the Bangladesh government to open communication lines with the United Nations and especially the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees. The Bangladesh government should listen to and work with human rights organizations and similar agencies to address this crisis in a more humane way rather than packing human beings and forcing them to relocate to a geographically vulnerable island. Relocating thousands of refugee people to an island that is flood-prone, at a high-risk of sinking, and vulnerable to frequent cyclones without a proper assessment of safety is cruel. The Rohingya have no hope or opportunities and their only chance is the support of the Bangladesh government but instead, this is happening to them. I ask once again, that the Bangladesh government change their decision immediately.”

 

 

Dr. Omar Bah,

Executive Director & Co-founder