By Vicki Prichard
NKyTribune contributor
Since 1975, 2.6 million refugees have settled in the U.S. While their countries of origin vary, their story is generally a shared one – refugees have fled his or her homeland, unable to return, because of fear of persecution.
Unlike undocumented immigrants, refugees arrive in the U.S. with legal status and work authorization. They apply for a Social Security card within ten days of arrival.
Currently, nearly 40,000 refugees are looking to rebuild their lives in Kentucky, a growing number of them in Northern Kentucky.
Approximately 350 Burmese Chin refugees, registered through the Kentucky Office for Refugees, are known to be living in Northern Kentucky, as well as more than 2000 Somalis.
A conversation for collaboration
Representatives with refugee resettlement services in Central Kentucky and Cincinnati came together recently at the Northern Kentucky Area Development (NKADD) office in Florence for a Refugee Community Forum to dispel misperceptions about refugees and discuss how communities and agencies can work together to address and assist Northern Kentucky’s refugee population.
Convening the forum were representatives from the Kentucky Office for Refugees. The office provides leadership, policy guidance and advocacy on issues affecting refugee resettlement in Kentucky. The office is privatized within the Catholic Charities of Louisville, Inc.
“I think many people are still unaware of the fact that refugees are brought here by the U.S. government and are immediately eligible for the benefits, services and employment opportunities that American born citizens are entitled to,” says Rylan Truman, grants manager for special programs with the agency.
Truman noted that while there are refugee resettlement agencies in Louisville, Lexington, Owensboro and Bowling Green, there are none in Northern Kentucky. But it is not without a helping hand.
Locally, RefugeeConnect works to pull refugees and resources together. Kelly Hishta Birkenhauer, of Newport, chair of the RefugeeConnect project, describes it as “an umbrella agency that works for establishing long term connections for refugees.”
RefugeeConnect came about through the Junior League of Cincinnati after the league conducted an in-depth analysis of programs across the Greater Cincinnati area, identifying gaps where the group could make a difference. The refugee population was identified, and specific need for unification of services after the initial three months of support refugees received from resettlement agencies.
Alicia Kappers, vice chair of RefugeeConnect, became involved with the project because of a personal connection. Her husband, a Palestinian refugee, became a U.S. citizen in 2011.
“His father fled his home in 1948, when his home was occupied by Israel,” says Kappers. “His mother and father grew up in refugee camps and his family will never be able to return to their homeland. I joined the project as the Educate Team leader and organized the ESOL [English for Speakers of Other Languages] courses, specifically serving the Burundi population in North Fairmount, and the Chin population in Crescent Springs.”
The appeal of NKy
Employment, affordability, safety and family are hallmarks of Northern Kentucky’s appeal to refugees.
Becky Jordan, State Refugee Coordinator with the Kentucky Office for Refugees, says Northern Kentucky presents a new phenomenon for their office in that they are seeing significant numbers of refugees in an area that is not supported by traditional agencies.
“It’s a challenge to connect them with agencies,” says Jordan.
Once a refugee enrolls through a resettlement agency, that agency can work to assist with housing, meals, and health screenings within the first 30 days. Ideally, they like to see the refugee find employment within 90 days of arrival. Jordan says Northern Kentucky can hold particular interest for refugees because of its employment opportunities.
“Refugees often migrate to an area because of one particular employer, and if that employer goes belly up then there goes that job. But what’s good about Northern Kentucky is there are more jobs in general,” says Jordan.
Overcoming barriers for business
Language, as opposed to lack of business acumen or work ethic, is the generally the biggest hurdle for refugees seeking business and employment opportunities.
“Learning the language is probably the most critical issue,” says RefugeeConnect’s Kappers, who points out that RefugeeConnect provides ESOL classes for the Chin and Burundians.
Naashom Marx, vice president of business growth and international trade with the Northern Kentucky Chamber of Commerce, recognizes business potential and can assist skilled refugees through her efforts.
While she works with large groups of people looking for employees to fill their needs, she also works to help entrepreneurial businesses grow, and is aware of the talent that many refugees represent.
“I see it as a huge opportunity to have new business open in Northern Kentucky,” says Marx. “My role is to help entrepreneurs and businesses grow. A lot of these refugees have been here two years – maybe they went to a job just for a job, but they’re good working people, the were good at the jobs in their country. I see it as an opportunity to do good.”
Journeying toward a new chance
Biak Hnin Sang came to Northern Kentucky two years ago. He came from Chin, officially renamed Myanmar in 1989, a state located in western Burma. In 1962 the Burmese military came into power, forcibly converting minorities to Buddhism. Central to Sang’s story is that he is a Christian, the faith the Chins have held since the 1940’s, when they converted during World War II. Education is equally important to Sang and a critical part of his story.
Because there were no colleges in the Chin state, Sang studied in another state. One day a state officer came to his home, asking him to attend state training.
“I could not accept that I would advocate something not good for our country,” says Sang.
His refusal prompted his arrest and he was placed in a compound. When he escaped, his family paid a trafficking agent $800 to help him get out of Chin. He made his way to Malaysia by foot and hitching an occasional ride. Once there, it took him a year to be registered, during which time he was permitted to study but not work. He met a family who took a risk and allowed him to work in their restaurant.
“I loved to read and they bought books for me,” says Chin. “I always pray to God for them.”
In 2011, Sang came to the U.S., landing in Albany, N.Y., where he had a place to stay and food to eat.
“I was so happy. I thought I would go to school, but I was over 18, so no high school. They were very polite,” says Sang.
Sang earned his GED and went back to school, working at night to pay his way.
“I was so happy,’ he says. “I had GPA of 4.0”
A friend of Sang told him that Northern Kentucky was a good place to live.
“I was so happy. I felt home again,” says Chin.
Different homeland, similar story
Just as Burmese Chins like Sang fled their homeland to avoid persecution, the last ten years have seen a spike in the number of Somali refugees.
Mahmoud Dhudhi left Somalia in 1991 when full-scale civil war broke out, leading to the disintegration of the central government and ongoing clan violence. The ensuing anarchy, clan warfare and border disputes have prompted more than a million Somalians to flee the country.
“We were a stable family in Somalia,” says Dhudhi, whose father was a police and special investigation agent. When conflict broke out in Somalia, Dhudhi lost a finger when a grenade was thrown at his family’s home.
His family fled Somalia, going to Uganda and then the U.S., arriving in Columbus, Oh. Like Sang, it was a friend who encouraged Dhuudhi to move to Northern Kentucky.
“He said it was easier to find a job here,” says Dhudhi, who since his move says he finds the people friendly. He has worked to help organize a Somali community to provide support to Somali refugees in Northern Kentucky.
“The major types of support we provide to the Somalians in NKY are basically translation, transportation, immigration services and job search,” says Dhudhi. “We also help the new comers with finding houses and apartments, but that is challenging.”
Finding friends and family…far from home
Just as Sang and Dhudhi were encouraged to relocate to the area through a friend’s counsel, community and family are key factors for most refugees.
Kappers points out that the 300-person community of Chin refugees from Myanmar that have established a church in Crescent Springs is appealing to Chin families in other U.S. cities who often migrate to the area because of the church community.
Catholic Charities of Southwest Ohio (CCSWO) and Kentucky Refugee Ministries (KRM) in Lexington and Louisville are the resettlement agencies in the region. Kappers says CCSWO resettles approximately 200 refugees annually, but that many are secondary resettled refugees.
Secondary migration can present a challenge in assessing a refugee population. Refugees are free to move where they choose after their initial resettlement, but are not required to register for services at their new location. Knowing the population helps agencies better assist refugees.
Truman and Jordan agree that a successful conversation has begun in working with Northern Kentucky’s refugee population.
“Everyone in attendance seemed engaged in the content and brought their own unique skills and resources to the table as we discussed potential next steps,” says Truman.
For more information about, or for, refugees, contact the Kentucky Office for Refugees at (502) 873-2560, or RefugeeConnect at jlcrefugeeconnect@gmail.com
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And what our OUR children? How are our children who are born, raised and settle in this area supposed to find jobs? And what about our school systems? I suppose they will now take money away from our children because we have to provide so many services to children who can’t speak, read or write English? And won’t our property taxes go up because of the services we have to provide? Health, education, social services, housing, food stamps, WIC……. Our services and school systems are being overwhelmed. These “religious organizations” are taking the money from the federal government and then dumping these people on the towns and communities who are forced to support them. If these religious organizations take the money from the feds, then they should be required to continue to support these people until they become productive members of society. This is being done – supposedly – the name of Christ, but more likely in the name of the almighty dollar.
Agreed Ms. Annie Smith. The people who want these refugees should have to support them out of their own homes and their own pockets.
Let’s hope you never have to flee for your life. But, if you do I hope someone is more compassionate toward you than you are toward others.
Agreed Peggy and Annie! We have American homeless, jobless and families who wonder where their next meal will come from! Where are all the same big efforts for these American citizens by those who advocate for refugees here? Oh, I get it; these people are being paid salaries and sweet benefits! If those who want to help refugees, justice, in my opinion, needs to require true charity and not government handouts…monies stolen from taxpayers (that is truly what all this is). Forced compassion is WRONG…robbing from others to advance any cause is wrong! When our country accepted Vietnamese the families were sponsored by Churches. My husband with his first, now deceased wife, helped such a family then…helped by teaching how to drive, to handle finances, get employment and into schools without any salary and benefits! These families were not given government dole outs! For me, I volunteer for a local food pantry. What are you doing, Rachel?
“For what it costs to resettle one Middle Eastern refugee in the United States for five years, about 12 refugees can be helped in the Middle East for five years, or 61 refugees can be helped for one year.”…here is a compassionate idea to help more! This info comes from: http://cis.org/High-Cost-of-Resettling-Middle-Eastern-Refugees
Of course, those who see this issue differently only want to sling guilt! Such a Christian act…NOT!