Good Afternoon {{Constituent First Name}},
We begin November with two recent federal policy changes that directly impact our work at Canopy NWA.
First, the new Presidential Determination for Fiscal Year 2026 sets the refugee admissions cap at just 7,500, with a stated priority for Afrikaners from South Africa. For the past 45 years, the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program has averaged roughly 90,000 people per year. This marks a sharp departure from that history. Locally, it means that more than 200 people already approved for resettlement in Northwest Arkansas now face indefinite waits under increasingly unstable conditions, and many families will remain separated. Allocating the vast majority of this year’s limited slots to one ethnic group, at the expense of others who are fleeing immediate danger or have already completed rigorous vetting, undermines the program’s long-standing commitment to vulnerability-based resettlement.
We also begin this month with a national hold on the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), commonly known as food stamps, which affects 240,000 Arkansas families and 42 million Americans. People with refugee status have already faced increased food insecurity since the passage of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act in July, which revoked SNAP eligibility for households with refugee status. Here in Northwest Arkansas, every refugee household that accessed SNAP was a working family with multiple young children.
These changes and others like them mean that we must do more with less. In the short term, the most effective support will come from our local community. We encourage you to visit the Northwest Arkansas Food Bank to learn how you can donate or volunteer. In the long term, meaningful change will depend on the voices of community members and elected leaders. Please consider contacting your Members of Congress to share your perspective on both the refugee resettlement program and SNAP access.
As the role of our local community becomes more vital than ever, Canopy is launching “Meet Your Neighbor,” a new storytelling series that highlights the lives of newcomers who are living, working, struggling, and thriving right here in Northwest Arkansas.
Our first story features Melesa, who arrived in Northwest Arkansas through the refugee resettlement program with her four children without her husband or parents. Family separation is sadly common in refugee resettlement, often the result of war and displacement. Melesa and her family had hoped to reunite this year, but due to recent executive orders, she now faces several more years before that dream becomes reality.
Thank you for standing with us through these challenging times and for continuing to believe in the promise of welcome.
Joanna Krause
Executive Director
Canopy NWA
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