Pete and I have been incredibly moved by the outpouring of support, from monetary donations to clothing and other supplies for Mohammed and his family. They were scheduled for a resettlement flight on January 9, 2025, that would take them to Turkey and then to their new lives in America.

Although this family is no stranger to heartbreak, what happened next is difficult to comprehend and accept. One of Mohammed’s sons, one of the five family members who remained in Iraq and was manifested on the January 9 flight, decided at the last minute that he no longer wanted to resettle with the rest of his family. After putting his life on hold for the nearly fifteen years this case has been processing, he just wanted to move on with his life separate from this refugee saga.

His timing could not have been worse, as the family was turned away from the airport when all five of them did not report for the flight. Despite desperate last-minute attempts to legally remove him from the refugee case so Mohammed, his wife, and remaining two children could continue with the resettlement flight, the damage was done. The case has once again been dropped back into administrative processing.

This development is beyond upsetting, frustrating, and frankly unbelievable. I have personally donated thousands of pro bono hours since I was first assigned this case in law school in 2011, and Pete has similarly devoted countless hours to his tireless congressional, media, and non-profit advocacy for the family. We understand and share your disappointment more than we can say.

However, we continue to believe with the core of our beings that this family represents the ultimate story of service and sacrifice and that we are honor-bound to our promise as Americans to bring them to safety. We will not give up working on resettling the remaining four family members as refugees, for as long as it takes.

We realize that with all that’s happened, there are those who may want to retract their generous gift rather than go back to waiting in uncertainty for the next developments. If you wish to receive a refund, please contact Pete at peter.m.farley@gmail.com or May at may.whitaker@outlook.com.

Please know we are committed to transparency with every cent donated and will offer a public accounting of every transaction when this is all over. 

In solidarity and service,

May and Pete