A South Carolina bill would hold faith groups liable for refugees they settle — including their crimes.
The South Carolina Senate last week passed a bill targeting refugees in the state, prompting concern that it may portend a wave of anti-refugee legislation around the country, particularly in the tense climate following the terrorist attacks in Brussels.
The bill, if passed by the South Carolina House and signed into law by Governor Nikki Haley, would require refugees’ sponsors to register them in a database maintained by the state’s Department of Social Services. It would also impose strict liability on a refugee’s sponsor if the refugee, at some point in the future, commits a terrorist or criminal act.
Jenny Yang, vice president of advocacy and policy at World Relief said, “I fear this may be the start of similar nationwide legislation.” World Relief is an evangelical humanitarian nonprofit group that helps resettle refugees who have been vetted and approved under a federal program run by the State Department.
Although World Relief and many evangelicals in the state have opposed the legislation, many of its Senate supporters belong to evangelical churches, highlighting a growing split within evangelicalism over immigration and refugee issues.
Alan Cross, a Southern Baptist minister opposed to the bill, noted that six of the bill’s eight co-sponsors are Southern Baptists.