Columbus council welcomes members of new Commission on Immigrant and Refugee Affairs

Columbus City Council on Monday approved appointments to the newly established Commission on Immigrant and Refugee Affairs and heard introductory remarks from the commission chair and several new commissioners.

Councilmember Barossa de Padilla said the commission grew from community listening sessions called “Immigrants Make Columbus,” and noted the council adopted city code language in November 2024 creating the commission. She introduced the new commissioners and invited the commission chair, Dr. Barth Shepkhan, to speak.

Dr. Barth Shepkhan said he emigrated to the United States about two decades ago and described the new commission as a vehicle to center immigrant voices in city policy. He said the commission will advise council and city departments and help bridge barriers that immigrants and refugees face when accessing services. Several new commissioners briefly introduced themselves, giving their country or community of origin — including representatives who identified as from the Yucatán Peninsula, Somalia, Ghana, Pakistan, Liberia, Korea, Palestine, Haiti, Mexico and India.

Councilmembers praised the appointments and encouraged commissioners to persist even when policy change takes time. Councilmember remarks highlighted the role immigrants play in entrepreneurship, cultural life and population growth in the region; Barossa de Padilla cited a statistic that immigrants accounted for more than a quarter of local population growth between 2014 and 2019.

The appointments were taken up on the consent agenda and included an introduction of the commission’s chair and vice chair at the meeting. Appointees present described priorities including policy recommendations, outreach and increasing residents’ sense of belonging.

The council thanked Department of Neighborhoods staff for assisting with the initiative and encouraged residents to follow the commission’s work as membership begins meeting.