News Intro Text
National Report Highlights the Many Economic Contributions of Refugees in the United States and in Louisiana.
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<p>Last month the Fiscal Policy Institute (FPI) and Center for American Progress (CAP) co-released <a href="https://www.americanprogress.org/issues/immigration/report/2016/06/16/139551/refugee-integration-in-the-united-states/"><em>Refugee Integration in the United States. </em></a> The report focuses on four groups of refugees—Somali, Burmese, Hmong, and Bosnian—that together are a group of roughly 500,000 U.S. residents, and 20 percent of all refugees in the country. The report illustrates the various ways these refugee groups contribute to economic growth in cities and states throughout the country.</p>
<p>The national report tracks the integration of the four refugee groups including their employment rates, educational levels, English acquisition, and home ownership trends. Major findings include:</p>
<ul>
<li>
One in 12 immigrants in the United States came as a refugee or was granted asylum.</li>
<li>
Refugee groups are gaining a strong foothold in the labor market, with labor force participation rates of men in the Somali, Burmese, Hmong, and Bosnian refugee communities often exceeding those of U.S.-born men</li>
<li>
Employment rates for refugee women catch up after 10 years to about as high as or sometimes higher than those of U.S. born women.</li>
<li>
Refugees see substantial wage gains as they gradually improve their footing in the American economy, with some starting their own businesses and many shifting to occupations better suited to their abilities as they find ways to get certification for their existing skills and learn new ones.</li>
<li>
Refugees integrate into American society over time, with a large majority of refugees having learned English and becoming homeowners by the time they have been in the United States for 10 years.</li>
<li>
Three quarters or more of refugees have become naturalized U.S. citizens after 20 years.</li>
<li>
Initial employment placements and other assistance provided by resettlement organizations are credited with getting refugees started down the path of successful integration.</li>
</ul>
<p>“Our findings in this new report demonstrate that when communities help refugees, they are also making an investment in their own future,” said report author David Dyssegaard Kallick. “The number of people forced to flee their country has reached record numbers in recent years—it’s a humanitarian crisis on a scale not seen since the end of World War II. What this report shows is that, as a growing number of political leaders now realize, doing what’s good for refugees is also good for the whole community -- their success is our success.”</p>
<p>The report shows that 755 refugees in the four groups resettled in Louisiana, including 145 refugees from Somalia, 458 from Burma, and 152 from Bosnia. Data from the national <a href="http://www.wrapsnet.org/Reports/InteractiveReporting/tabid/393/EnumType/Report/Default.aspx?ItemPath=/rpt_WebArrivalsReports/Map%20-%20Arrivals%20by%20State%20and%20Nationality">Refugee Processing Center</a> that tracks all refugees entering the U.S. show that nearly 3,000 refugees have resettled in Louisiana since 2000. Several nonprofit resettlement agencies in the state provide case management services to hundreds of those refugees each year, including helping adult refugees find full-time employment. In 2014, 59 percent of the 238 refugees that those agencies aided in resettlement entered full-time employment during that year.</p>
<p>One of those resettlement agencies is Catholic Charities Archdiocese of New Orleans, which operates the <a href="http://www.ccano.org/immigration-services/">Immigration and Refugees Services program</a>. The program staff aids in the economic and cultural integration of refugee families in New Orleans. “I have worked with refugees for over 15 years, and have been awed by the skills and resources they offer amidst some of the greatest challenges imaginable,” said Julie Ward, the program’s director. “Refugees and former refugees have shaped our community into what it is today. We are enriched everyday by the diversity, intellect, hard work, and innovation that refugees offer, and we in turn are more vibrant and resilient as a result of their contributions.”</p>
<p>Despite the remarkably successful outcomes of refugees resettling in the U.S., policymakers in our state and country continue to disagree about how to handle a sharp rise in the number of people displaced by conflict and persecution in places like Syria. The United States has only resettled around 1,200 Syrian refugees, well below its pledged goal of 10,000 in 2016. Amid these disagreements, <em>Refugee Integration in the United States </em>demonstrates there is reason for encouragement. When welcomed into the United States and provided resettlement services, refugees bring significant cultural and economic benefits to our state and country.</p>
<p>The national report tracks the integration of the four refugee groups including their employment rates, educational levels, English acquisition, and home ownership trends. Major findings include:</p>
<ul>
<li>
One in 12 immigrants in the United States came as a refugee or was granted asylum.</li>
<li>
Refugee groups are gaining a strong foothold in the labor market, with labor force participation rates of men in the Somali, Burmese, Hmong, and Bosnian refugee communities often exceeding those of U.S.-born men</li>
<li>
Employment rates for refugee women catch up after 10 years to about as high as or sometimes higher than those of U.S. born women.</li>
<li>
Refugees see substantial wage gains as they gradually improve their footing in the American economy, with some starting their own businesses and many shifting to occupations better suited to their abilities as they find ways to get certification for their existing skills and learn new ones.</li>
<li>
Refugees integrate into American society over time, with a large majority of refugees having learned English and becoming homeowners by the time they have been in the United States for 10 years.</li>
<li>
Three quarters or more of refugees have become naturalized U.S. citizens after 20 years.</li>
<li>
Initial employment placements and other assistance provided by resettlement organizations are credited with getting refugees started down the path of successful integration.</li>
</ul>
<p>“Our findings in this new report demonstrate that when communities help refugees, they are also making an investment in their own future,” said report author David Dyssegaard Kallick. “The number of people forced to flee their country has reached record numbers in recent years—it’s a humanitarian crisis on a scale not seen since the end of World War II. What this report shows is that, as a growing number of political leaders now realize, doing what’s good for refugees is also good for the whole community -- their success is our success.”</p>
<p>The report shows that 755 refugees in the four groups resettled in Louisiana, including 145 refugees from Somalia, 458 from Burma, and 152 from Bosnia. Data from the national <a href="http://www.wrapsnet.org/Reports/InteractiveReporting/tabid/393/EnumType/Report/Default.aspx?ItemPath=/rpt_WebArrivalsReports/Map%20-%20Arrivals%20by%20State%20and%20Nationality">Refugee Processing Center</a> that tracks all refugees entering the U.S. show that nearly 3,000 refugees have resettled in Louisiana since 2000. Several nonprofit resettlement agencies in the state provide case management services to hundreds of those refugees each year, including helping adult refugees find full-time employment. In 2014, 59 percent of the 238 refugees that those agencies aided in resettlement entered full-time employment during that year.</p>
<p>One of those resettlement agencies is Catholic Charities Archdiocese of New Orleans, which operates the <a href="http://www.ccano.org/immigration-services/">Immigration and Refugees Services program</a>. The program staff aids in the economic and cultural integration of refugee families in New Orleans. “I have worked with refugees for over 15 years, and have been awed by the skills and resources they offer amidst some of the greatest challenges imaginable,” said Julie Ward, the program’s director. “Refugees and former refugees have shaped our community into what it is today. We are enriched everyday by the diversity, intellect, hard work, and innovation that refugees offer, and we in turn are more vibrant and resilient as a result of their contributions.”</p>
<p>Despite the remarkably successful outcomes of refugees resettling in the U.S., policymakers in our state and country continue to disagree about how to handle a sharp rise in the number of people displaced by conflict and persecution in places like Syria. The United States has only resettled around 1,200 Syrian refugees, well below its pledged goal of 10,000 in 2016. Amid these disagreements, <em>Refugee Integration in the United States </em>demonstrates there is reason for encouragement. When welcomed into the United States and provided resettlement services, refugees bring significant cultural and economic benefits to our state and country.</p>