The often stated reason for restricting immigrants from the Middle East and Africa is that terrorists may be hiding among those seeking to escape the ravages of war and poverty.
"Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free," reads the inscription on the Statue of Liberty, that awe-inspiring symbol of freedom that has greeted millions of immigrants over the past 130 years as they sailed into New York Harbor.
Today, that inscription needs an asterisk to reflect that Syrians and immigrants from predominantly Muslim countries are not as welcomed.
The often stated reason for restricting immigrants from the Middle East and Africa is that terrorists may be hiding among those seeking to escape the ravages of war and poverty.
Here in New Jersey, Gov. Chris Christie has vowed not to accept any more refugees from Syria in the wake of the Nov. 13 Paris attacks by the Islamic State or ISIS. More than two dozen other governors has echoed Christie's stance and sternly oppose President Barack Obama's proposal to take in 10,000 Syrian refugees for resettlement over the next year.
Christie's fellow Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump has gone even further and called for a "total and complete shutdown of Muslims entering the United States until our country's representatives can figure out what is going on."
While the crescendo of immigration rhetoric has reached a feverish pitch, private organizations and individuals have been quietly working to ease the plight of the refugees.
As The Times of Trenton pointed out last week, the Rev. David Davis of the Nassau Presbyterian Church hopes to house a Syrian refuge family sometime this year through a partnership with the Princeton Theological Seminary.
Davis said there are many in the church community and the greater Princeton community who have offered to donate food and clothing.
The Jewish Center of Princeton is also looking at hosting refugees, and the Diocese of Metuchen has announced it will also welcome refugees.
The same outpouring of compassion was evident when waves of immigrants from Cuba, Cambodia, Vietnam, Bosnia and Burma came rushing upon our shores.
But Davis said today it is increasingly difficult to find federally-approved local agencies that act as clearinghouses for refugees. After months of searching, Davis said he was able to connect with the Church World Service in Jersey City to help find a Syrian family in need of a new home.
Without a doubt, the United States has to take appropriate precautions to prevent foreign-born terrorists from entering this country. The federal government says it takes 18 to 24 months to process Syrian refugees who want to come to the United States.
So it is safe to say the huddled masses from the Middle East and other war-torn areas will not be coming here in droves.
But for those few who do make it, at least they can count on a helping hand from civic-minded groups and individuals who are willing to step in where politicians fear to tread.