Ukrainian Culture Center offering humanitarian aid to refugees
LOS ANGELES - The Biden Administration is offering humanitarian aid to Ukrainians in the US that could protect them from being deported back to their homeland while under siege. The Ukrainian Culture Center is doing its best to help Ukrainians during this difficult time.
3 years ago, Yuri Wolinskyy left his family in Ukraine and came to the US for his education. As he prepares for an anti-war demonstration in West Hollywood he says, with each report of a bombing in his homeland he gets a little more worried about his parents who live there.
"We the Ukrainian community try to donate a lot of money,"Wolinskyy said. He’s personally donated $5,000. "That’s really a lot for me."
George Wyhinny, Vice President of the Ukrainian Culture Center in Los Angeles, says they’ve been working with Congressman Adam Schiff’s office for the past week.
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"We’re hoping that they’re going to open up to visas in the United States."
That’s the tough part for many with only Ukrainian citizenship. Those with dual American-Ukraine citizenships have been able to get across the border.
Meanwhile, the Ukraine Center is planning a one-stop event Sunday where people can get information from various agencies, but can also participate in a humanitarian effort to get medical supplies to Ukraine. A donation of $10 will get people a small first aid kit.
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In Orange County, Access California Services says its ready to help in multiple ways. One of the first ways is with citizenship and immigration as well as housing. They can also help with medical aid and even dealing with language.
They and others know resettling can be very unsettling and hope to do as much as possible to make sure refugees resettle safely and comfortably.
"As the humanitarian crisis in Ukraine continues to escalate, the United States has a moral duty to help civilians who are now in harm’s way to find safe harbor. I will work to support efforts to resettle Ukrainian refugees here in the United States, in California, and in Los Angeles, through both new and existing avenues such as visa programs, and I look forward to working with my colleagues in Congress on a bipartisan basis," said Congressman Schiff.
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