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Fresnolandia Podcast: Fresno’s history of accepting refugees

by Danielle Bergstrom June 17, 2025June 17, 2025

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L-R: Linda Renland and Nataliya Svider both work daily to provide Ukrainian parolees' resources at FIRM. Gisselle Medina | Fresnoland

On this week’s Fresnolandia, Jordan and Danielle speak with Christine Barker, the executive director of FIRM — Fresno Immigrant and Refugee Ministries — a nonprofit group that has been working on refugee resettlement locally since the 1980s.

They discuss Fresno’s long history of accepting refugees, what the process looks like for people to successfully claim refugee or asylum status — and move to the U.S., what resettlement looks like, and how that has all changed under the current presidential administration.

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Tagged: asylum, FIRM, refugees

Danielle Bergstrom

danielle@fresnoland.org

I created Fresnoland so we can make policy public for everyone. More by Danielle Bergstrom

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Fresnolandia Podcast: Fresno’s history of accepting refugees

by Danielle Bergstrom, Fresnoland
June 17, 2025

					<h1>Fresnolandia Podcast: Fresno’s history of accepting refugees</h1>
<p class="byline">by Danielle Bergstrom, Fresnoland <br />June 17, 2025</p>
					
<p>On this week's Fresnolandia, Jordan and Danielle speak with Christine Barker, the executive director of FIRM -- Fresno Immigrant and Refugee Ministries -- a nonprofit group that has been working on refugee resettlement locally since the 1980s. </p>
<p>They discuss Fresno's long history of accepting refugees, what the process looks like for people to successfully claim refugee or asylum status -- and move to the U.S., what resettlement looks like, and how that has all changed under the current presidential administration.</p>
<p><a href="https://open.spotify.com/episode/29VbqJHXPnZJ5UidkkCDyN?si=587ee27336c343c0" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Spotify</a> | <a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/fighting-for-refugees-in-fresno/id1755004481?i=1000713250327" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Apple Podcasts</a></p>
<h3 class="wp-block-heading">Further Reading</h3>
<p><a href="https://fresnoland.org/2025/01/30/trumps-immigration-orders/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Refugees and immigrants in Fresno prepare for deportations amid chaos and confusion</a></p>
<p><a href="https://fresnoland.org/2024/12/09/ukrainian-parolees/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Hundreds of Ukrainians who fled to Fresno face uncertainty ahead of incoming Trump administration</a></p>
<p><a href="https://fresnoland.org/2025/01/09/all-we-carry-film/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Fresno’s Big Red Church hosts a film screening, shining new light on typically unseen immigration experiences</a></p>

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