World Refugee Day: June 20th

Tomorrow is World Refugee Day, designated by the UNHCR (United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees). Not many people are aware of this day, so I'd like to take the time to share a little bit about the refugee situation worldwide. Most of you know I work with refugees in Missouri, so feel free to ask any questions; I'll do my best to address them.

A refugee is anyone who has fled his or her home because of persecution or a well-founded fear of persecution based on their race, ethnicity, religious beliefs, or social and poltical affiliations. According to the UN, there are more than 11 million registered refugees worldwide today. In order to receive services as a refugee, an individual must be given this classification by UNHCR; UNHCR officials interview individuals and conduct background checks to authenticate identity before they grant refugee status to the individual.

Refugees usually flee to an area outside their country, but sometimes they remain within the boundaries of their home country (these are IDPs- Internally Displaced Persons). Most refugees remain in the country to which they fled (local integration), and some are able to be repatriated back into their home country. Obviously, the latter is the best situation if it is possible, but most times, it's just not an option for these people to return home; they are forced to begin again in another place where they may or may not know the language and culture. Less than one percent of refugees worldwide are ever resettled into a third country, such as the United States.

The United States and Canada receive the highest numbers of resettled refugees each year, but preoccupation with national security can sometimes hamper the process for these people. At the beginning of each fiscal year (which is October-September for the national government), the President sets an arrival ceiling for the nation, determining how many refugees he will allow into the country over the course of the year. He also determines priorities in terms of which populations need resettlement. The ceiling is usually set around 80,000 refugees, but very rarely do we reach that ceiling. Remember that less than one percent of refugees worldwide are ever resettled into a third country.

When times are 'good' and the economy is strong, it seems people might be a little more willing to help others (I don't know if this necessarily plays out into practice, however). But when the economy is poor, and people are struggling, programs like those who help refugees see a lot of backlash from the general American public. Virtually every day at lunch, one of our staff members has a story from someone saying something to the effects of, "You know, Americans are having a rough time right now. Never mind these other people- leave them where they are. Let someone else take care of the problem." Of course, we understand that many people are experiencing incredibly difficult times right now, but we also understand the plight of a refugee. These people have been beaten, raped, and tortured simply because someone didn't like the color of their skin or the religion they practiced or the town in which they were born. How can we turn our backs on these individuals who have suffered at no fault of their own? Is it not enough to remember that the United States signed numerous international treaties protecting individuals such as these and promising to provide help when needed? Perhaps realizing that thousands, even millions, of people were either indirectly or even directly made refugees because of what our country did or did not do through our various international policies is difficult, but it is necessary to understand. We have a responsibility to assist these people.

I was on a conference call a few weeks ago; our national affiliate was discussing how all the national resettlement agencies were pushing the President to increase the refugee arrival ceiling for FY 2010. Naturally, some individuals at various local agencies were concerned. One individual from Boston asked, "Do you think that is wise in this current economic situation of the nation? We are already having difficulties finding employment for people here- how can we find jobs for more people?" At first I thought I agreed with the individual from Boston; at our agency in particular, our caseload of new arrivals has tripled within the past three years, and we continue to serve refugees free of charge for up to five years after their arrival in the United States. As you can imagine, our client to staff ratio is rather high, and providing services can become very difficult. How in the world will this be better to accept more refugees for FY2010?

But then a woman working in D.C. said something that I will never forget. She mentioned she thought it was a wise decision to allow more refugees to resettle in the United States if we are granted the additional funding requested. [Side note: the amount of funding allocated to refugee resettlement programs is completely stagnant; the specific amount hasn't changed in over twenty years- not even an adjustment for inflation. Furthermore, of all the money allocated by Congress to fund resettlement, local resettlement agencies only see thirty-nine percent of that amount. The administrative overhead is sixty-one percent. So the next time someone complains about a local resettlement agency, just remember they are doing their best with stagnant funding of which they only see thirty-nine percent.] She continued: "I know it's hard for us to think about accepting more refugees into our already-strained agencies with our already-overworked employees, but it's important to note that the current economic crisis is not just an American crisis. It's a global crisis. UNHCR just released new data concerning those refugees who are on their 'desperately needing resettlement' list. 560,000 individuals are on that list now- 560,000 people are in situations so horrible that UNHCR wants them out now. Imagine the refugees living in these secondary countries, which are also facing economic crises. Imagine the backlash against the refugee living there. We must help these people. We must get them out- because living without a well-paying job and struggling to learn English in Boston is better than living in Kuala Lumpur, hacking it out among the city-dwellers, only to be arrested and thrown in jail by the Malaysian police." It's then that I realized the old adage of "There is always someone better off than you, and there is always someone worse off than you" rings true. We cannot simply forget the struggling when we ourselves are struggling; we cannot simply forget the oppressed and broken. We cannot.

Let us not turn our backs on these beautiful people. Let us not forget their plight.