STUDY PAPER ON REFUGEES
(mandated by Resolution 79-5 and passed by the 1979 Assembly of Lutheran Student Movement)
The United States has historically aided those people under persecution in their own countries. It was to this end that The Refugee Act of 1980 was passed earlier this year. This bill established a policy for refugee admissions to this country as well as a uniform domestic policy of resettlement assistance for all groups of refugees.
A refugee is defined as “any person who is outside any country of his nationality… and who is unable or unwilling to return to…that country because of persecution or a well-founded fear of persecution based on account of race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group, or political opinion.”
Under the ‘normal flow’ provisions of this bill, the Attorney General may admit 50,000 refugees per fiscal year apart from the immigration quota. This number was increased from the previous 17,400 allotted to this ‘seventh preference’ category* and is due to be reviewed in September, 1982. Unfortunately, this number was outdated as soon as it was passed because of the Cuban and Indochinese influx (the Indochinese alone account for over three times that number). The President may determine, before the beginning of the fiscal year and after consultation with the members of the House and Senate Committees on the Judiciary, that admission of a specified number of refugees over and above the 50,000 is in the national interest. The bill further provides that they may apply for permanent resident alien status after having lived in the United States for one year (previously two years).
Refugees from different countries who wish to come to the United States must go through different procedures. For example, three groups of refugees leave the Soviet Union today – Armenians, Jews, and ethnic Germans. The Jewish refugee movement is by far the largest. In order for a Gentile to leave the country, he must arrange a fictitious marriage with a Jew and obtain an exit visa to Israel. During a stop in western Europe, he will decide to come to the United States instead. A dossier is prepared for each refugee, and he is directed to an agency to continue the process. The Intergovernmental Committee on European Migration (ICEM) provides air fare to the U.S. (usually New York), and the agency finds a job and shelter for the refugee. The last step is the most difficult – finding a job for a person who speaks no English. It is not feasible, however, for the agency to support the refugee for the six to eight months it would require for him to get a working knowledge of the language.
Cubans arrive in the United States by the well-publicized boats to Florida. They are then place in camps in Florida, Arkansas, and Pennsylvania, where they must wait for a relative to sponsor them. Morale is often low at these camps, and oftentimes a fictitious relative will be created in order to get out of the camp. Once the refugee is out, however, he will frequently arrive at a resettlement agency which must provide him with food, housing, and a job.
The Indochinese refugees(Vietnamese, Thai, Lao, and Cambodian) escape their countries by boat or land and go to a ‘country of first asylum,’ i.e. Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, the Philippines, Indonesia, or Hong Kong. The problems start when these countries can no longer handle the flood of people and turn them away. An international meeting was held where commitments were made by various countries; the United States accepts 14,000 Indochinese refugees per month. In recent months, therefore, there has been enough movement out of countries of first asylum to reduce this problem. At the other end, Hanoi, in particular, has agreed to help stop escapes, to stop pushing people out of Vietnam, and to work on an orderly departure (to stop the necessity of boats). It is predicted that if the quota is maintained at the present level for a year, the problem in Southeast Asia will assume manageable proportions. This question will come before Congress in the next month or two; however, the quota will probably be reduced.
After entering a country of first asylum, the refugee is registered by the United Nations High Commission on Refugees and is interviewed. The case then goes to the INS (Immigration and Naturalization Services), who makes the decision to accept or reject this case. This decision is complicated by the extended family groups found in Southeast Asia. Acceptance of this case is approval to come to the United States.
All Indochinese refugees coming to the U.S. must pass through the American Council of Voluntary Agencies for Foreign Service, Inc. (ACVAFS), a clearinghouse for all the agencies involved in this resettlement. This office processes all applications and matches each refugee with a sponsor.
The largest agency sponsoring refugees is the United States Catholic Conference, which handles forty to forty-five percent of the influx. This agency actually has an excess of sponsors; however, sponsors, housing, and jobs are not always to be found in the same area. USCC usually takes up any slack left by the other agencies. Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Services takes nine percent of the Indochinese but desperately needs sponsors. Part of the disparity here is from the difference in size between the two religious groups, and part is due to the difference in church structure. The Lutheran stronghold is in rural areas which have difficulty accepting refugees. Local congregations remain the main source of LIRS as opposed to commitments by the bishops which the USCC relies on. Some states sponsor refugees – notably Iowa, Oregon, and Michigan.
Other refugee groups must have individual approval of each case; there is no blanket provision by the United States. The African refugees from Ethiopia and Somalia fall into this category. Haiti’s situation is unusual in that the United States has supported the government there. Many Haitians who came to this country have been deported. It is felt that there is an inequality between the treatment of the Cubans, who were allowed to stay, and the Haitians, who must return to persecution and starvation.
It is recommended that local student groups take an active part in the resettlement of refugees. Even though most student groups do not have the funds to attempt sponsorship on their own, it is suggested that they could offer to help a local congregation in sponsoring an individual or a family. While the congregation would provide the money, the students could provide the ‘legwork’ – fixing up dwellings, getting food donations, helping with English or learning Western ways. Jobs are particularly hard to find for the illiterate Indochinese who can speak no English. Just getting to know a refugee family can be a rewarding experience. Regular visits to a refugee family can aid in the resettlement process. Contact LIRS for more information on sponsorship. They are enthusiastic about student groups becoming involved in any way.
*this is the last preference under the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1952. The other categories deal with relatives of U.S. citizens or permanent resident aliens apd with people in certain job classifications needed by the United States.
prepared by Amy Kaufman and Victor Haglund
University of Southern California Lutheran Campus Ministry