It all started with a passport — a Syrian passport, to be precise, one found next to the dead body of a man who attacked the Stade de France on the evening of Nov. 13.

The result was immediate – an onslaught of political figures, from French President Francois Hollande to British Prime Minister David Cameron to U.S. presidential candidates, all asking the same question: should Syrian refugees be allowed into countries if terrorists can so easily sneak in among them?   

Many, especially from the long list of GOP presidential hopefuls, have called for halting the flow of Syrian refugees into the United States, and 31 governors have stated they do not want any more refugees in their states.

In an effort to find a new angle on the refugee crisis and how it’s been affected by the Paris attacks, San Bernadino and other events which have provoked a backlash against refugees, I spoke with Colin Triplett, resettlement director at Catholic Charities Migration and Refugee Services.

As resettlement director, Triplett manages the department, overseeing the work to ensure that refugees are able to integrate with the community.

The group resettles all kinds of refugees, from Burma, the Congo, Sudan, Somalia, Butan, Cuba, Iraq, Afghanistan and many other nations.

“We expect to serve 1,200 clients in the coming year,” said Triplett, who expects they will be working with people from Syria by approximately July.

While the group resettles refugees, they can only do so after the refugees are admitted by the Department of State and assigned to them via the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops.

Triplett had no comment on the ability of screenings to detect terrorists or to ensure that refugees have no antagonistic feelings towards the U.S., but he did describe the process as having 11 steps, starting with the UN High Commission for Refugees and continuing until the Department of State’s final screening. This process can take 18-24 months at a minimum and up to 20 years.

Triplett has not heard of any malice towards or discrimination against refugees he has worked with, stating that both they and his group have received “lots of support” from the Louisville community.

He was also very confident about the refugees’ ability to find work, saying that 82 percent of them find jobs within a 90-day period after being resettled.

Triplett encourages fellow Christians to “remember the duty of the church to welcome a stranger.”

This duty belongs not just to the Catholic Church, but to all Americans. As this nation was founded by refugees, seeking refuge from a tyrannical reign and persecution, so must we remember and live by the words featured on the Statue of Liberty, the very symbol of Freedom: “Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free.”

Anyone wishing to get in touch with Catholic Charities Migration and Refugee Services to volunteer can contact the organization at (502) 873-2566.