Support Utah’s Afghan Community
We extend a warm welcome to the community members interested in joining. Here you will find many ways you can get involved with UMCL to help Utah’s vulnerable Afghan Refugee community.
Make a Donation
The current upheaval in Afghanistan has left many local Afghans scared for relatives they left behind. It has been an emotional toll. In addition to the emotional stress, they also need to address their physical needs. This is where we can help. Your donation directly supports Afghan refugees as they integrate and become members of our local community.
Your support helps refugees gain access to the family-sustaining resources necessary to succeed. By helping to create a stable foundation, it will help refugee families and future generations succeed.. Please donate to help us provide these resources.
Humanitarian Parole Applications
Humanitarian Parole allows folks to enter the US, with opportunity to then apply to regularize their status through family adjustment, asylum, or other legal pathways. It is extremely expensive, costing $575 per person per family, even for infants.
Volunteer to Sponsor an Afghan
Afghans need your help! Utah Muslim Civic League has helped over 50 Afghans fill out applications for their at-risk families in Afghanistan to come to the U.S. These applications are not done! We have a huge need for sponsors to complete these applications.
By being a sponsor, you demonstrate that you have a sufficient financial income to help an Afghan should they enter the United States and need help. This is not legally binding, but a moral obligation. Help us finish these applications for at-risk Afghans! We need 30 sponsor volunteers by the beginning of January.
We are raising funds to be able to cover this tremendous cost for families. Please consider donating to help reunite families. Donate to provide urgent legal support to at risk Afghan families.
We demand that the Biden administration waive this fee. We need your help to advocate for these vulnerable Afghans, many of whom cannot afford this substantial fee. Sign our petition to waive the $575 humanitarian parole application fee.
Afghan Youth Collective
We want to support our current Afghan youth living in Utah, as well as the incoming Afghan youth refugees. We come from varied backgrounds and are keen on providing a support system that may not have been available to us.
We are inviting all community youth members to join us to explore ways to mobilize, collaborate and give back to the larger community. Questions? Contact Us
Help provide meals and necessary items to new arrivals in the Afghan Community
As we see Afghans arriving in Utah and being placed in hotels and other such accommodations, we have put together an urgent plan to provide them with ready meals and a bag with essentials items. 150 boxes of Halal food will be prepared by local Afghans we are requesting volunteers to sponsor or deliver boxes.
In addition, we are putting together 150 bags of essentials for Afghan families. Many of these include hygiene and toiletry goods, cleaning supplies, and other supplies to get ready for winter. Please donate for these necessary resources for families. All donations will go directly to these families.
100% of these funds will be used towards ready meals. No overhead or operational costs will be levied.
Get Involved.
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Volunteer Legal Support for Afghans in Utah
We’re looking for licensed attorneys, paralegals, law students or law graduates to help Afghans complete humanitarian parole applications and other support services. The form is for legal workers interested in volunteering with Afghan humanitarian parole applications. Training will be provided. Volunteers will provide pro se support to Afghans and their sponsors, but will not formally represent applicants.
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Stay Informed
The devastation Afghanistan is facing is impossible to summarize in a post or infographic. We welcome everyone to step up and help wherever you can. Get involved by checking out and sharing the resources.
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Become a Supporter
Calling all Volunteers! We need translators who can speak Pashto, Dari and Farsi. Responsibilities could include translating Afghan documentation and facilitating communication between legal volunteers and the Afghan community members. We also need volunteers to help put together and distribute supplies, and deliver meals for the incoming Afghan refugees. You can also share what you can do to help.
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Partner With Us
The humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan is escalating. Will you join the effort? We are a group of organizations and teams working to elevate the voice of the Afghan American Community of Utah and respond to their collective needs. Let us know how you can help.
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Urge Elected Leaders to protect at-risk Afghans
Sign a letter to elected representatives on behalf of Afghans of Utah. We stand in unequivocal defense and solidarity with the Afghan people in this moment of great pain and uncertainty.
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Utah Afghan Community Fund
The Afghan Community Fund, sponsored by the Community Foundation of Utah, will ensure that Utah is prepared to welcome and support Afghan refugees. Under the leadership of the Governor’s Refugee Advisory Board, the state is working to address resource gaps in community, housing and basic needs for the 765 people who will soon resettle here.