HIAS Pays Tribute to Former President Jimmy Carter

SILVER SPRING, Md. — HIAS pays tribute to the late president Jimmy Carter, who passed away yesterday at the age of 100. President Carter was a champion for refugees, and for human rights around the world.

“President Carter championed international human rights through both his words and his deeds. He saw refugee protection in the United States as a key expression of American values,” said HIAS President Mark Hetfield. “During a global refugee crisis, and with bipartisan support, President Carter signed and implemented the Refugee Act of 1980, establishing a permanent system of asylum and refugee resettlement. In 1980, President Carter welcomed over 207,000 refugees to the United States through the safe and legal pathway of refugee resettlement, more refugees than any President – or country – ever resettled in a single year before or since.”

HIAS will greatly miss the powerful voice of President Jimmy Carter, and will do all we can to carry forward his legacy and to advocate for his vision of the United States as a leader on international human rights. May his memory be for a lasting blessing.