Huge crowd of residents protest Muslim refugees in Montana
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MISSOULA, Montana — As many as 500 residents held a demonstration opposing resettlement of Muslim refugees in Montana.
There were so many people at the hearing they flowed into the hallway and down the stairs. The public hearing was moved to the Hamilton Middle School auditorium. But it only held 250 people, so it was moved to the gym.
A letter drafted by commissioners said the “threat of the Islamic state of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) and other terrorist groups is intensifying.” The letter said it is the county’s responsibility to protect the health safety and welfare of its citizens.
Commissioners say they received a flood of emails on the issue and say the ratio was 50-1 against bringing in refugees.
“It’s not possible to adequately investigate the legitimacy of each claim of refugee status,” said Commissioner Jeff Burrows.
The issue is boiling into a deeply emotional debate in the area.
One man testified he opposed refugees coming here.
“All the ones brought to Paris were supposedly vetted,” he said. “You saw what happened to people there that were murdered.”
But the letter spurred an online petition urging people to oppose the commission’s efforts.
There are strong feelings on both sides of this issue.
“I support a safe place for refugees fleeing the horrors of terrorism,” said one woman.
It was, at times, a tense hearing and filled with strong words.
“This is about setting the stage so that there will be battle in Ravalli County,” said one man, “so that ISIS will come after our women.”
“All gods of major religions say take care of people the way you want to be taken care of,” said another woman.
After the public hearing the commission went back into session and approved the letter it had drafted in opposition to resettling refugees in Missoula after Missoula County commissioners signed off on a letter of support for bringing a refugee resettlement office to the area.
That letter shows support for a group of volunteers in Missoula called Soft Landing, which is working to bring the International Rescue Committee to Missoula.
The board drafted the letter to the Assistant Secretary of the Bureau of Population, Refugees and Migration of the U.S. State Department.
The letter said migration of refugees from Missoula to surrounding counties is “inevitable.”
Commissioner Jeff Burrows said decisions made in Missoula to allow relocation could impact Ravalli County and surrounding counties.
Earlier this week Hamilton resident Lee Tickell organized an online petition protesting the board’s letter. Tickell said refugees would be reviewed by “the best investigative bodies in the world.”
The Montana Association of Counties issued an opinion that said individual counties do not have the authority to exclude refugees.
This article was originally published by fellow CNN affiliate KECI. It is used here with permission.