How do the Karen get to America?

Overview

The Karen being resettled in America come through the Federal Refugee Resettlement Program of the U.S. government. The U.S. Congress passed the Refugee Act of 1980 which standardized the resettlement services for all refugees admitted to the U.S. Since the enactment of that legislation, annual refugee admissions averaged 98,000. After the 9-11 attacks on the U.S., however, numbers dropped significantly hitting a low of only 28,422 admissions in 2003. With adjustments to security standards, these numbers are beginning to climb again reaching 53,813 admissions during fiscal year 2005.

Refugee resettlement is a combined effort of the U.S. government and private non-profit organizations around the U.S. The Immigration and Naturalization Service determines which refugees meet the requirements for refugee status and can be admitted to the U.S. The Department of State coordinates the resettlement policy, manages the overseas processing, cultural orientation and transport to the U.S. The State Department also provides funds to private non-profit organizations that receive the refugees and do the hands-on resettlement at the local level. The Department of Health and Human Services is responsible for a range of social services once the refugees arrive in America, particularly for those under five years of age.

What is a Refugee?

The U.S. government has adopted the definition of a refugee developed by the United Nations at the 1951 Convention on Refugees. This definition states that; "A refugee is a person who owing to a well founded fear of being persecuted for reasons of race, religion, nationality, member in a particular social group, or political opinion, is outside the country of his nationality, and is unable to or, owing to such fear, is unwilling to avail himself of the protection of that country." The 2004 World Refugee Survey estimates there are 11.9 million refugees and asylum seekers around the world.

The U.S. Resettlement Process

Each year, the president establishes a quota representing the maximum number of refugees to be admitted to the U.S. In recent years, this quota has ranged from 50,000 - 70,000 people from refugee situations around the world. The Department of State in coordination with the United Nations is keeping track of refugee situations wherever they are occurring in the world. With no end to the problems in sight for Burma, and with some refugees having been in camps for 20 or more years, the 154,000 Karen in the refugee camps in Thailand have been selected for U.S. resettlement should they desire to come.

For several years, State Department officials visiting refugee camps in Thailand have given indications that the doors of the U.S. would be open to any Karen refugee who wanted to come. Rumors began circulating in the camps about what resettlement means. Some rumors depict the U.S. as heaven on earth and other rumors paint the opposite picture. Hopefully, as refugees come and adjust, the reality of resettlement will be conveyed to camp residents so that informed decisions can be made. Opting to resettle in the U.S. is not an easy choice to make and once in the U.S., nearly impossible to reverse.

Resettlement is voluntary. The refugee camps are not closing, so it is not known just how many refugee camp residents will eventually come to the U.S. or go to other countries offering similar programs. At a minimum, it seems likely that the total number of Karen refugees coming to America will number in the 10s of thousands.

So the State Department compiles a list of people applying to come to the U.S. In 2006, the Tham Hin camp was targeted. In 2007, the Mae La camp has been added. From Mae La, it is estimated some 12,000 will come to the U.S. this year. With a total of 9 refugee camps, Karen and Karenni resettlement will likely take several years to complete.

National Voluntary Agencies

After applying for resettlement, each refugee is thoroughly interviewed and screened by the Department of State and Homeland Security's Bureau of Citizenship and Immigration Services. They also are screened for active or communicable diseases by the International Organization for Migration or the Center for Disease Control. After a process of interviews, those approved for admission are allocated among the 10 National Voluntary Agencies that operate throughout the U.S.

The 10 National Voluntary Agencies are:

1. Church World Service (www.churchworldservice.org)
2. Domestic & Foreign Missionary Society, Episcopal Migration Ministries (www.ecusa.anglican.org/emm)
3. Ethiopian Community Development Council:(www.ecdcinternational.org)
4. Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society:(www.hias.org)
5. Bureau of Refugee Programs, Iowa Dept. of Human Services:(www.dhs.state.ia.us)
6. U.S. Committee for Refugees and Immigrants (www.refugees.org)
7. International Rescue Committee (www.theirc.org)
8. Lutheran Immigration and Refugees Service (www.lirs.org)
9. U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (www.nccbuscc.org/mrs)
10. World Relief Refugee Services (www.wr.org)

Each week, representatives from these 10 agencies meet with the State Department. The Government representatives will indicate how many refugees are ready to come that week and these refugees are then allocated among the 10 agencies. So there is no overall plan for just where the Karen will be placed.

Each of these 10 agencies have affiliates around the U.S. These local affiliates are likewise gauging their capacity to resettle refugees and reporting to their parent organizations. With a combined number of affiliates nationwide, refugees could be resettled in any of 450 cities across the country.

Some effort is given to putting groups of refugees from the same location in the same place. Likewise, effort is given to placing family members in the same city. But still, Karen are already settled in some 30 cities across the U.S. and families do get separated. Many Karen have little sense of U.S. geography and don't really know much about where they have landed even after they arrive. So a feeling of being disconnected is not uncommon.

Meanwhile, back in the refugee camp, once an applicant for resettlement passes their interviews, they can attend cultural orientation. Orientation is a daunting task. Most refugees have already gone from life in a remote Karen village, to life on the run, to life in refugee camp. The jump then to life in the U.S. is huge. For most Karen refugees, they will be experiencing life with electricity, running water, heating and cooling systems, cars, grocery stores, ATM machines, credit cards, jobs, schools, etc. all for the first time and all in a language they don't understand. The 3 - 5 day orientation program only scratches the surface.

(Last updated 4/4/07)