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Matthew Bocklund, former chair of the St. Croix County GOP, rallies
proponents of pausing refugee resettlement before a March 5 meeting of the
St. Croix County Board in Hudson, Wis.

The resettlement of 75 refugees in Eau Claire has generated a backlash in western Wisconsin from those who want more control over the arrival of foreigners who have fled persecution.

St. Croix County supervisors will vote Tuesday on whether to pause refugee resettlement, following the lead of Chippewa County. Several other
counties are pursuing similar efforts. A bill that recently passed the Wisconsin Legislature requires much wider notification about the prospect
of refugees coming to a community.

While Minnesota has been resettling refugees for decades, the events in
western Wisconsin offer a window into the political consequences of
bringing refugees into new places, and the concerns of locals that they
should have the right to say no.

"I am more convinced than ever that we need a pause. … The whole process
has just been horrible," said St. Croix County Supervisor Mark Carlson at
a March 5 meeting. He noted a shortage of affordable housing, seniors struggling to pay rent and high poverty rates in some towns. "But then
we're telling people we're going to take more of your money and give it to people from a foreign country to come in … we're not protecting the people
when we do that."

President Joe Biden raised refugee admission limits to 125,000 a year
following record lows under the Trump administration, though the program struggled during the pandemic. After refugee pathways opened up again, resettlement agency World Relief looked into starting a new office in
western Wisconsin.

Eau Claire City Manager Stephanie Hirsch reached out to the organization a
year ago and helped set up a meeting with representatives of government, churches and employers.

She described inviting a resettlement agency as a step toward promoting
the region as an attractive place to live. Half of Wisconsin's towns have
lost population since 2020 while Eau Claire is one of the fastest growing. Hirsch noted that it's common for her to meet with those relocating to Eau Claire and not something that requires approval from officeholders, so
there was no need to notify the Eau Claire County supervisors and every
elected official.

"Our role was just saying we would love to have people move here and we
are a fantastic place to live," she said.

After World Relief met with others in Eau Claire over the next few months,
the federal government approved the nonprofit's plans. Local news reports revealed those plans in October, and World Relief began holding public meetings.

U.S. Rep. Tom Tiffany, a Republican from western Wisconsin, was among many
who complained that the community never had a chance to weigh in before
the plans were set. Most refugees for now are expected to be Karen people
from Myanmar and the two Congolese nations. But a billboard went up in Eau Claire claiming taxes were funding an organization to traffic Somali
refugees and questioning why the plan was hidden for months.

Citizens organized opposition and packed meetings, complaining that Hirsch
had struck a deal with World Relief without giving local taxpayers any say
on a program that would cost public money. The federal government supports refugees for the first 90 days, but they typically rely on local and state support for the first few years as they transition to self-sufficiency.

Matthew Bocklund, former chair of the St. Croix County GOP, and other
critics say their concern is not rooted in racism or xenophobia, but about taxation without representation.

"The citizens have to ask themselves, where is the representation if we're going to be hit with these taxes?" Bocklund said. "We look at this as a
1773 moment, like the Boston Tea Party."

Federal law requires resettlement agencies to consult with local
governments about plans to bring in refugees. A World Relief official said
the federal government provided the agency with a list of stakeholders to contact about opening an office and for regular meetings about the
arrivals.

The Eau Claire City Council unanimously voted to welcome refugees. An Eau Claire County resolution to pause resettlement until World Relief
completes an economic impact study failed 18-9.

Emily Crane Linn, World Relief's director of initial refugee resettlement,
said she attended a meeting last month with a large group of stakeholders
and leaders from the U.S. Department of State and the Department of Health
and Human Services.

"I tried to be conciliatory to [convey] that sincerely our desire is to be collaborative, to be good neighbors, good partners, and if anyone feels as
if they've been left out or not consulted enough, we want them to ... be involved going forward," she said.

The controversy spurred the Wisconsin Senate and Assembly recently to pass
a bill requiring that if a local official contacts or is contacted by a nonprofit or federal agency about proposed placements of refugees then it
must be reported to every municipality, county and school district in a 100-mile radius. Each local government entity must put it on a meeting
agenda and hear public comment.

World Relief officials said that could mean half of Wisconsin would have
to be notified about just one meeting, and they and Hirsh describe it as a significant barrier to the resettlement process.

Meanwhile, Tiffany recently joined other GOP members of Congress in
sponsoring a bill barring resettlement in any locality that takes
legislative or executive action to disapprove it, saying that the federal government has not been consulting and coordinating with local
municipalities, adequately vetting newcomers and considering the cost of services.

In 2020 in Minnesota, Beltrami County voted to bar refugee resettlement
based on an executive order issued by President Donald Trump allowing
local governments to do so. A federal judge blocked the action.

None of the Wisconsin actions have derailed World Relief's plan. The organization moved in 21 refugees to Eau Claire starting in February from
the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the Republic of Congo and the
Central African Republic.

World Relief said it has no plans to resettle refugees in St. Croix
County, but public comment has remained heated. Overflow crowds have
packed several recent meetings in Hudson — an hour west of Eau Claire — to speak on the issue. One commenter in January declared, "I don't want to
live in a third-world hellhole," to applause from the audience.

At another meeting last week, Bocklund stood before the 50 citizens
gathered and told them, "We have the opportunity to stand up for America."

Resident after resident stepped forward to voice concern that the
government didn't adequately screen refugees, that they would not properly assimilate, that struggling taxpayers could not bear more costs and that citizens had not been given proper say. Several immigrants also spoke in
favor of pausing refugee plans, noting they had endured an expensive and lengthy process to come to America and questioned whether residents could afford to support the newcomers.

Some speakers, however, lamented the message that St. Croix County was
sending.

"Most of them are just like us," Teresa Chandler said to the board on
Tuesday night. "I'm just heartbroken that we're going to make a resolution
that officially says you're not welcome."

As she walked out the door, one resident told her, "That's a lie."

https://www.startribune.com/refugee-resettlement-in-western-wisconsin- sparks-backlash/600349728/

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