Over the past quarter century, the United States has hosted more refugees than all other industrialized countries combined - more than 2.3 million people. However, after the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, the United States took in far fewer than in previous decades.
In recent years, the largest number of refugees have come to the United States from Africa (Somalia, Liberia, Sudan, Ethiopia) - more than half of refugees, from the former Soviet Union and East Asian countries (primarily Laos, Vietnam, and Burma).
After the end of the Cold War, the number of refugees (that is, people whom the United States recognized as refugees) decreased noticeably. Many American experts now note that the largest groups of refugees from the USSR and Southeast Asia accepted by the United States in the 1980s and 1990s were not refugees according to UN standards. Initially, the program for accepting Soviet refugees was designed for Jews, but in recent years, people from the former USSR have mainly come from various Protestant congregations, Ukrainian Catholics, Uniates, and Orthodox Christians.
The process of admitting a potential refugee to the United States takes quite a long time and is very complicated. One can become a refugee in various ways: the 'individual' method means that the refugee is recognized as such by the relevant UN structure; the 'family' method means that the potential refugee is 'summoned' to the United States by relatives who have previously received such status; the 'collective' method means that the State Department designates an ethnic group in need of asylum.
The algorithm for processing relevant applications usually looks like this. After filing an application for refugee status, a corresponding case is opened. Then the applicant is checked against the database of criminals and terrorists (using the capabilities of intelligence services). Later, the potential refugee is interviewed by an official from the Department of Homeland Security, who is interested in the reasons why the person considers it necessary to flee their country. During the interview, the potential refugee must prove that they were indeed persecuted and that returning to their homeland could threaten their life.
Subsequently, the applicant’s explanations are checked and clarified. If these stages are passed, the refugee undergoes a medical examination (previously, HIV-infected people were not allowed into the United States). If they are called by relatives, they must prove that they are able to provide financial support for the first time. The transportation of refugees to the United States is usually organized by international humanitarian agencies, such as the International Organization for Migration.
According to the Center for Immigration Studies, in recent years the United States has made three major changes in this area. First, refugee status is granted to numerous small ethnic groups from post-Soviet states and Southeast Asian countries. Second, US authorities have delegated more authority to the UN and non-governmental organizations. Third, they have expanded the definition of the term 'refugee' - now it includes groups of people who previously had no chance of becoming refugees and obtaining the right to live and work in the United States.
In 2006, the United States allowed approximately 42,000 refugees to resettle, about half as many as the average over the years of the refugee program that has been in effect since 1980. Corresponding interviews were conducted with people from 60 countries. In 2007, the United States intends to grant asylum to 70,000 people - the corresponding decision was made by the White House. However, the actual number of refugees may be lower. The fact is that the US budget is approved by Congress, which in recent years has sought to cut spending. Refugees also become victims of austerity. According to the Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration, on average, the quota is filled by no more than 80%. For example, in 2000, the United States planned to accept 90,000 refugees but accepted just over 73,000; in 2003, 70,000 and 44,000 respectively.
In the United States, a refugee can count on significant benefits for medical care, housing, learning English, and a number of other concessions - in fact, these are the same benefits and subsidies that low-income and disabled Americans receive. In the United States and abroad, more than 400 humanitarian and public organizations (mostly ethnic, for example, Vietnamese organizations help newly arrived compatriots) provide assistance to refugees, receiving federal funds for helping new settlers. The 'starting conditions' for starting a new life in the United States for a person with refugee status are much better than for holders of other types of visas.
In the last five years, some ethnic groups that are believed to be persecuted in their homelands have either resettled or started the resettlement process in the United States. These include Meskhetian Turks from Russia, Somalis from Kenya, Burundians from Tanzania, Karen from Myanmar (Burma), Vietnamese from the Philippines, etc. The US State Department considers a group of 5-15 thousand people to be ideal. However, accepting even such a relatively small number of refugees may later turn into a serious problem - such settlers in the United States have the right to invite their relatives, the number of which can reach hundreds of thousands.
At the same time, the United States still refuses to grant asylum to Iraqis (it is believed that after the overthrow of Saddam Hussein's regime, more than 2 million people left Iraq, settling in neighboring countries), hoping for an improvement in the situation in their homeland. In 2006, the United States accepted no more than 300 Iraqi refugees.
Based on materials from Washington ProFile.