UPDATED

William E. Cleary sr. | CNBNews

CHERRY HILL, NJ (August 27, 2021)--Last Saturday morning there was a family of  Mexican or Honduras Nationals standing near a stop sign in the Kohl/Target shopping center across from the Cherry Hill Mall begging for money.  The family consisted of a woman, a man, and two young children maybe 9 or 11 years old. The sign said, "We need money to eat."  The woman was standing in the street and the other family members were sitting on their luggage. She was wearing clothes from her homeland but the man and children were dressed in shorts, sneakers, and polo shirts. When a car would pull up to the stop sign she would move her hands to her mouth like she was eating. If someone gave her anything she would bow with her hands folded in prayer, and hand the money to her husband who placed the item into a bag.

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None of them were wearing a mask.  Mixed emotions passed through our minds as we witnessed this scene. Immediate sorrow and pity for the family's plight, and thankfulness that we have a roof over our head and food on our shelves. We also experienced concern; are these people carrying the Covid virus? Have they been vetted or are they criminals?  Are they terrorists?  What effect will they and the thousands of other illegal immigrants entering our state going to have on our schools our jobs, our taxes?  Who is going to pay for their housing and food?

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We had read that busloads of Nationals crossing the Mexican border were being driven to New Jersey and beyond. The people have been dropped off into communities throughout the east coast, many times the leaders of the community were never notified. We tried to speak to the woman to ask her where was she from but she didn't understand us. 

We have now learned that the United States is flying thousands of Afghanistan refugees into airports in New York and New Jersey. 

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The first group of Afghan refugees arrived yesterday at Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst in New Jersey, the Air Force confirmed to NJ Advance Media.

”One bus came in overnight,” said Air Force Capt. Christopher Bowyer-Meeder, the spokesperson assigned to the task force at the joint base.

A press release on the base’s website said the U.S. Air Force is proposing the location serve as a temporary shelter for up to 9,500 Afghans who have Afghan Special Immigrant visas for up to 365 days.

On Monday, Gov. Phil Murphy said New Jersey would be getting a “significant” number of refugees, but he didn’t offer any specific numbers, reported NJ.com

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“We will welcome Afghan refugees with open arms here in New Jersey at Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst,” Murphy said in a tweet. “Our state has always served as a shining beacon of hope to the world, and we will do everything in our power to help these refugees rebuild their lives.”

The Defense Department will mostly be overseeing the refugees’ transfer from Dulles Airport in Washington D.C. to Fort Dix, Murphy said.

Below is the complete Air Force press release

JOINT BASE MCGUIRE-DIX-LAKEHURST, N.J. — 

As part of contingency planning and preparation for potential support of Afghan Special Immigrant relocation, environmental officials at Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst have prepared a Draft Environmental Assessment and Draft Finding of “No Significant Impact”.

The Draft EA evaluates the potential for environmental impacts associated with the proposed action of mobilizing temporary shelter facilities for ASIs within the Burlington County portion of JB MDL

The proposed action is in accordance with a Presidential authorization and Joint Staff issued Planning Order for Department of Defense Support to the Department of State for Afghan Relocation to coordinate U.S. efforts to provide temporary shelter to ASIs.  In support of this order, the USAF is proposing to make DoD land or facilities available at JB MDL and mobilize the temporary shelter of up to 9,500 ASIs on JB MDL for up to 365 days. 

The proposed action involves the utilization of existing facilities as well as the construction of temporary shelters on a former parade ground on the Dix Area of JB MDL. The need for the proposed action is to provide safe haven and shelter at JB MDL for ASIs who assisted the U.S. and our allies. 

The Draft Environmental Assessment has been prepared in order for the Air Force to be ready as a proposed ASI location to support the mission and ensure a firm understanding of environmental issues and potential public concerns associated with the proposal.

The Draft EA and Draft FONSI are available for review at the following library location and website: https://www.jbmdl.jb.mil/About-Us/About-Us/Environmental-Publications/

Burlington County Library Pemberton Branch

16 Broadway Street Brown Mills, NJ 08015

Written comments on the Draft EA and Draft FONSI/FONPA are invited and should be sent by Close of Business on 28 August 2021. Please mail and/or email comments to:

ATTN: EA Temporary Shelter of Afghan Special Immigrants

2901 Falcon Lane

Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst, NJ 08641