Browsing by Subject "Refugee Resettlement"

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    Documenting Hmong and Lao Refugee Resettlement: A Tale of Two Contrasting Communities
    (2015-05) Ratsabout, Saengmany
    This paper explores the migration of refugees from Laos to the United States following a civil war further complicated by U.S. involvement in Southeast Asia during the Vietnam War. Drawing from previous studies on Southeast Asian refugees during the initial wave of resettlement, as well as new data from the past four decades, this study focuses on two ethnic communities in Minnesota, the Hmong and Lao. The comparison of these two communities is unique in that they are from the same country, were involved in the same kind of conflict, share similar socio-economic backgrounds, and fled the country of Laos for the same reason. Although resettling to the U.S. for the same reasons and starting with similar circumstances (levels of educational attainment, English fluency, etc.), in the nearly 40 years since their arrival, their experiences have diverged. What explains the discrepancy in integration of the Hmong and Lao?
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    Syrian Resettlement Practices and Experiences in the United States: A Nationwide Survey and Phenomenological Study
    (2017-08) Utrzan, Damir
    Violence in Syria has displaced an unprecedented number of people. But a relatively complex asylum process in the United States, combined with rising anti-refugee sentiment, challenges its longstanding values of welcoming the “tired, poor, and huddled masses yearning to breathe free” (Lazarus, 1883). This dissertation adds to the broader understanding of refugee resettlement and placement practices. In the first aim, 49 leaders of non-government organizations – which collectively resettled 224,491 refugees, including 7,366 Syrians between 2013 and 2016 – were surveyed about placement efforts. In the second aim, 12 refugees from Syria – 8 men and 4 women –were interviewed about their experience across each stage of resettlement (i.e., pre-resettlement, resettlement/ migration, and post-resettlement/adjustment). Findings suggest that both resettlement organizations and refugees are impacted by the sociopolitical climate. Organizations are faced with more demands and less resources; refugees are unsure about their future in the United States but grateful for a second chance. Recommendations for policy change, along with clinical and pedagogical implications, are discussed in the context of these findings.