Human Rights Commission approves resolution supporting refugees

Spokane’s Human Rights Commission Tuesday approved a resolution in support of settling refugees in Spokane regardless of national origin.

Citing the inscription on the base of the Statue of Liberty, the commission “encourages everyone in the City of Spokane to welcome them with open arms and open hearts,” the resolution says.

Refugee resettlement is handled through the State Department, which has approved a ceiling of 530 new refugee arrivals in Spokane for the 2016 fiscal year, World Relief Spokane Director Mark Kadel said Of those, he anticipates a few families will be from Syria.

World Relief has settled 527 refugees in Spokane over the last year.