Archive for the ‘other categories’ Category
Posted by Christopher Coen on May 2, 2012
Reading through ORAM’s new guide on assisting LGBTI refugees, asylees, and asylum seekers I found a code of conduct to focus on when assisting these people. It seems that this list of principles would also be highly useful in assisting any person or group of refugees or asylees, and therefore worth posting here:.
◊ Demonstrate Kindness, Patience, and Sensitivity: Maintain a kind and patient attitude towards refugees, asylees, and asylum seekers. Remain sensitive to the fact that most of them are continuing to heal from psychological and physical scars left by traumatic experiences.
◊ Be Aware of Power Disparities: Do not assume an equal footing between you and the refugee, asylee, or asylum seeker. Act consciously to put yourself in the refugee’s situation before making a request of this individual.
◊ Understand Your Friendship from the Refugee’s Perspective: Remember that with scant resources in their new country, refugees are particularly vulnerable and may feel obligated to say or do things that they otherwise would not in order to secure your continued friendship and support.
◊ Avoid Conflicts of Interest: Avert situations pitting your interests (including financial ones) against those of the refugee.
◊ Respect Differing Cultures, Religions, and Beliefs: Demonstrate respect for differing cultural and religious backgrounds and practices. Do not proselytize or attempt to convert the refugee to your own religious, cultural, or political beliefs, even if you believe you are acting in the refugee’s best interest.
◊ Support Autonomy: Support the refugee’s ability to make independent decisions. Affirm that refugees bring much to [their new community and friends] and to their new country.
◊ Value Refugees’ Contributions: Remember that refugees are defined not by their needs, but by the contributions they do and will make to their new communities.
◊ Communicate Honestly: Always communicate honestly, even when doing so is difficult.
◊ Demonstrate Accountability: Fulfill all commitments once they are agreed to.
◊ Protect the Refugee from Discrimination: Identify discrimination against the refugee, whether based on sexual orientation, gender identity, race, religion, nationality, or any other grounds. Stand up for the refugee.
◊ Respect Interpersonal Boundaries: Respect the refugee’s right to personal privacy. Refrain from becoming physically or romantically intimate with the refugee…
◊ Safeguard Confidentiality: Keep [confidential] all potentially sensitive or private information about the refugee…unless otherwise instructed by the refugee being helped. Confidentiality extends to the personal history, medical status, financial arrangements, and other dimensions of the refugee’s life. Maintaining confidentiality is particularly important for asylum seekers and for refugees awaiting resettlement, as they have not yet secured or reached a place of safety. Read more here
Posted in best practices, LGBT refugees, ORAM | Tagged: asylees, asylum, code of conduct, lgbti, ORAM, personal boundaries, power disparities, refugees, resettlement | Leave a Comment »
Posted by Christopher Coen on April 29, 2012
ORAM (the Organization for Refuge, Asylum & Migration) has released the first ever guide for American LGBT and accepting communities on welcoming people fleeing persecution in their home countries, according to a recent email announcement from ORAM.
…Rainbow Bridges, a 48-page guide developed in a pilot project to resettle LGBT refugees in San Francisco, offers practical step-by-step guidance on welcoming new refugees, ensuring their mental and physical wellbeing, and helping them find support in their new communities. It includes sample forms, a suggested code of conduct, and outlines the avenues for refugees to receive housing, employment, and federal assistance…
…ORAM estimates the US receives about 2,000 refugees a year who are fleeing persecution based on their sexual orientation or gender identity, representing 6% of all refugees in America. Unlike other refugees, those who are LGBT or intersex often undergo the integration process alone, facing exclusion from the religious and immigrant communities that form the safety net for most newly arrived refugees and asylees. Rainbow Bridges will help U.S. LGBT, faith-based, and welcoming communities support these refugees as they build new lives in the United States…
…About ORAM
The Organization for Refuge, Asylum & Migration (ORAM) is the only organization focused exclusively on helping vulnerable LGBTI refugees worldwide find safety and rebuild their lives in welcoming communities. ORAM increases global support for refugees and asylum seekers through advocacy and education, as well as technical assistance to people and groups interested in working with refugees, asylees, and asylum seekers…
The report notes that resettlement agencies, “are unaccustomed to the isolation and challenges LGBTI refugees face and are unfamiliar with their unique needs. Many [resettlement agencies] lack the training and resources needed to effectively serve this vulnerable group. Perhaps most importantly, no [resettlement agency] has the resources or capacity to successfully integrate an individual without support from family or community.” This is an important point when you stop to think of all the other refugees resettled without support from family or community, e.g. the 3000+ Sudanese “Lost Boys” refugees.
Posted in best practices, LGBT refugees, ORAM, San Francisco | Tagged: bisexual, gay, lesbian, lgbt, lgbti, ORAM, Organization for Refuge Asylum & Migration, refugees, resettlement, transgendered | Leave a Comment »
Posted by Christopher Coen on March 26, 2012
In 2010, about 3,500 lesbian/gay/bisexual/transgender (LGBT) refugees were resettled in the U.S. – including about 125 in Pennsylvania – and about 1,000 LGBT asylum seekers are also entering the country.Most LGBT people who come here as refugees or seeking asylum don’t identify as LGBT, making sensitive resettlement services trickier to apply. In Philadelphia the Nationalities Service Center is resettling some of these refugees. An article in the Philadelphia Daily News explains:
…refugees classified as lesbian/gay/bisexual/transgender (LGBT) [are being] resettled in Philadelphia by the Nationalities Service Center, the city’s largest refugee-resettlement agency…
…Until recent years, LGBT refugees in the U.S. were more likely to identify their persecution as ethnic, religious or political, said Juliane Ramic, the NSC’s director of social services.
On Dec. 6, President Obama issued a presidential memorandum directing the first-ever U.S. government strategy dedicated to combating human-rights abuses against LGBT people abroad. On the same day, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton spoke in Geneva about the need to protect LGBT people. “In many ways, they are an invisible minority,” she said. “They are arrested, beaten, terrorized, even executed.”
The NSC in Philadelphia, along with representatives from the Chicago-based Heartland Alliance for Human Needs and Human Rights, conducted training to help ensure that refugee-resettlement agencies and other service providers understand the vulnerabilities of LGBT refugees and asylees before, during and after resettlement.
Because most LGBT people who come here as refugees or seeking asylum don’t identify as LGBT, reliable statistics on their numbers are hard to come by. The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees does not identify or track LGBT refugees, and information on sexual orientation or gender identity rarely is reflected in refugees’ files, according to the Heartland Alliance.
In 2010, about 3,500 LGBT refugees were resettled in the U.S. – including about 125 in Pennsylvania – and about 1,000 LGBT asylum seekers entered the country, the Heartland Alliance estimates… Read more here
Posted in Heartland Alliance, LGBT refugees, Nationalities Service Center, Obama administration, Philadelphia | Tagged: gay, glbt, lesbian, lgbt, lgbti, Nationalities Service Center, Philadelphia, refugees, resettlement, transgendered | Leave a Comment »
Posted by Christopher Coen on January 12, 2012
Under a new program the City of Seattle will offer job training and educational support to low-income immigrant and refugee youth between the ages of 15-20 who typically have poor high school graduation rates. To pay for the program the City will redirect $315,000 from existing city programs for immigrants and refugees, with another $150,000 in funding added. An article in The Seattle Times has more:
Job training and educational support will be offered to low-income immigrant and refugee youth and their families under a new program announced Tuesday by the City of Seattle…
…The city is looking for established or emerging organizations that can improve the outcomes for immigrant and refugee youth between the ages of 15-20 who typically have poor high school graduation rates, few job skills and little parent support or advocacy…
Advocates say immigrant and refugee teens have a difficult time competing for and landing jobs because of their limited language skills, lack of job training and the gaps in their education because of their family histories… Read more here
Posted in economic self-sufficiency, education, employment/jobs for refugees, funding, schools, Seattle, teens | Tagged: at-risk, graduation rates, job skills, job training, jobs program, refugees, resettlement, seattle, teenagers, youth | Leave a Comment »
Posted by Christopher Coen on December 7, 2011
It’s hard to imagine what its like for some refugee teenagers after we plop them down into our schools when they have little schooling, no English, and no knowledge of the local culture. Imagine not understanding how to get lunch or open a locker for weeks and no one notices. Or worse, being bullied or ignored by other students when adults make little effort to prevent that, or help students understand refugee teenagers’ plight. An article in The Salt Lake Tribune tells the story on young refugee that the refugee program and a school are trying for a better outcome with:
…For typical American teenagers, high school holds both excitement and liberal doses of adolescent angst. Now imagine being dropped into that social pressure cooker with little schooling, no English, and no knowledge of the local culture…
…Rising problems with drugs and gang violence, particularly among refugees in the 18-21 age group, has prompted the [Utah Refugee Services Office] to redouble its efforts with youth.
[Gerald Brown], the refugee services director, says he has attended four funerals for young refugee men in the past two years due to violence or drugs.
“We’re determined to do something about it,” Brown says. “There’s no single answer, but I think if we can put a lot of different things together, then we do have a real chance.”
Part of it is helping students succeed academically, he says. Too often, youths become frustrated when they cannot compete with their peers in school. They find other ways to stand out… Read more here
Posted in Karen, language, men, Salt Lake City, schools, teenagers, teens, Utah, young adults | Tagged: Burma, drugs, gangs, Karen, Myanmar, refugees, resettlement, teengers, Utah Refugee Services Office | 1 Comment »
Posted by Christopher Coen on November 20, 2011
A roundtable panel discussion In Austin addresses the issue of older refugees. Panelists included Zarni Tun (resettlement case manager with Refugee Services of Texas); Lorel Donaghey (employment specialist with Caritas of Austin); Casey Kasper (ESL teacher with Interfaith Action of Texas) and Rebecca Tulis (extended case manager with Refugee Services of Texas). The discussion is described at Austin Refugee Roundtable:
…Some of the problems faced by older refugees –identified as refugees over the age of 50- included:
- General fear of being a burden on family members.
- It is more difficult for them to learn English which makes it more difficult to pass the US citizenship test. This makes them not eligible to receive SSI/SSDI beyond 7 years.
- Employment difficulty since many jobs that would be a good fit (caring for others, childcare, sewing) require individuals to be fluent in English or able to work fast on big machines… Read more here
Posted in alienation-isolation, Austin, Caritas of Austin, elderly refugees, employment/jobs for refugees, ESL & ELL, language, mental health, Refugee Services of Texas, Refugee Services of Texas | Tagged: Austin, Caritas of Austin, elderly, ESL, Interfaith Action of Texas, panel discussion, Refugee Services of Texas, refugees, resettlement, Roundtable | Leave a Comment »
Posted by Christopher Coen on October 22, 2011
Wouldn’t you think that the US, which has now been resettling large numbers of refugees here from around the world since the end of World War ll, would have figured out how to screen refugees for mental health problems? After all, we screen every refugee for physical health conditions, supposedly within 30 days of their arrival. It turns out that our resettlement program still hasn’t worked out the nuts and bolts of the screening process — let alone treating them for these conditions — though we have long known that many of these people are survivors of torture, abuse, deprivation, dislocation and other hardships associated with the process of becoming refugees. Minnesota Public Radio News has an article discussing the (still disorganized) process of directing refugees to the basic mental health care that many of them so desperately need. An emerging theory is that we should use community health workers to screen refugees.
According to the Minnesota Department of Human Services, our state is home to more than 70,000 refugees.
Refugees arrive here from countries wracked by political violence. Torture is used intentionally in their homelands to silence opposition and transform cultures through fear. So it isn’t surprising that refugees aren’t comfortable speaking about the atrocities they survived.
Resettlement programs seek to integrate refugees into our communities and to help them achieve economic self-sufficiency. But unless we address their traumatic experiences, we condemn many to live in silence with undiagnosed and misunderstood symptoms of major depression and post traumatic stress disorder.
The real tragedy is that their symptoms are treatable.
Refugees arriving in the United States typically receive a health exam to identify physical problems, but they are not screened systematically for mental health problems…
…The Center for Victims of Torture (CVT) often receives referrals of refugees who are torture survivors after an eight- to 10-year period of difficult resettlement due to undiagnosed and untreated mental health symptoms. Those symptoms make it difficult for refugees to learn English, adjust to community life, learn a new culture and support their families.
Health clinics often tell us they know how to treat trauma, but they lack the language and cultural knowledge. Refugee leaders and groups often tell us they have the cultural knowledge but don’t know how to treat trauma…
…more must be done to include mental health screening along with the required medical exam. CVT is currently collaborating with the University of Minnesota, the Minnesota Department of Health and four refugee groups to develop a culturally appropriate mental health questionnaire for refugees coming to our state. Simple questions in the refugee’s language will identify those who might benefit from mental health services, and allow the health care screeners to refer them to the best resource in the community.
One such resource emerging in Minnesota is community health workers. They are bicultural and bilingual health workers who help link vulnerable populations to the health care system and could be used when larger numbers of refugees are screened and identified for mental health concerns… Read more here
Apparently no one has thought to ask why refugee resettlement agencies aren’t already screening refugees for major depression, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and other mental stress related conditions. Why would refugee resettlement case workers, who do nothing but work with refugees every day, not already be educated in recognizing these illnesses? Resettlement agency case workers are supposedly bicultural and bilingual, and in contact with every resettled refugee already. Aren’t they the refugee experts?
Posted in disabled refugees, Major depression, mental health, Minnesota, PTSD, sexual and gender-based violence - refugees fleeing | Tagged: Center for Victims of Torture, community health workers, health screening, major depression, mental health, Post-traumatic stress disorder, PTSD, refugees, resettlement, torture | Leave a Comment »
Posted by Christopher Coen on October 18, 2011
Freshman Sen. Rand Paul finally ended his two-week hold on extending Supplemental Security Income to elderly and disabled refugees, by demanding that the Senate Judiciary Committee’s immigration panel hold an oversight hearing on the entry of two terrorism suspects to the country via the refugee program. The SSI benefits expired for about 5,600 elderly and disabled refugees on Sept. 30. A POLITICO article has more:
Ending a two-week standoff, freshman Sen. Rand Paul agreed to lift his hold on a bill extending aid to thousands of elderly and disabled refugees living in the United States.
The Kentucky Republican allowed the bipartisan bill to advance after Democratic leaders promised to hold a congressional hearing into how individuals are selected for refugee status and request an investigation into why two terrorism suspects were admitted to the U.S. through a refugee program, an aide said…
…As part of the agreement with Paul, Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), the bill’s author and chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee’s immigration panel, will hold an oversight hearing examining refugee resettlement in the United States. Paul will be among those testifying. And Schumer and Paul will jointly request the inspectors general at the Homeland Security, State and Health and Human Services departments investigate why the Iraqi terrorism suspects were allowed to enter the country... Read more here
Yet, we already know why the terrorism suspects got through the security barriers. Prior to the December 2009 underwear bombing incident the Department of Homeland Security was not checking refugee applications against a broader set of security data, including fingerprints. So, what then does Sen. Paul intend to do with this oversight hearing?
Posted in Congress, Dept of Homeland Security, disabled refugees, elderly refugees, Iraqi, right-wing, security/terrorism, SSI | Tagged: disabled, elderly, Rand Paul, refugees, resettlement, security, Senate Judiciary Committee, SSI | Leave a Comment »
Posted by Christopher Coen on October 10, 2011
Colorado’s eligibility crackdown on its Old Age Pension will not effect elderly refugees. Formerly, immigrants living in Colorado could sponsor their elderly parents as immigrants by telling the federal government they would take care of their relatives, but then sign up their family members for the Old Age Pension. Now, there is a five-year residency requirement, putting the state in line with federal benefits law. The new law also allows exceptions for hardship cases, such as elderly immigrants who are refugees. An article in the Denver Post has more:
For years, Colorado was known as a place with a unique legal loophole that allowed people to import their elderly immigrant relatives — family members they’d already promised to provide for — and immediately make taxpayers support them…
…The Old Age Pension program provides more than 23,000 low-income Colorado residents who are at least 60 years old with cash benefits of up to $699 per month…
…Voters added the Old Age Pension program to the state constitution in 1936. Originally, recipients had to have lived in Colorado for 35 years before getting the pension, but courts struck down the requirement as well as another requiring recipients to be U.S. citizens, meaning lawful permanent residents are eligible.
However, a remaining provision of the constitutional amendment says that the income of the family of the recipient can’t be considered in determining eligibility for the program. That’s despite the fact that under federal law, a person who sponsors an immigrant must sign a form pledging to be responsible for the immigrant…
…State officials and caseworkers say the frequent result was that people living in Colorado sponsored their elderly parents as immigrants, telling the federal government they take care of their relatives but then signing up their family members for the Old Age Pension.
With the five-year residency requirement, the program became aligned with federal law, which imposes the same waiting period to receive federal benefits…
…The new law does allow some exceptions for hardship cases, such as those elderly immigrants who are refugees or who are abandoned by their sponsors… Read more here
Posted in Colorado, elderly refugees, reform | Tagged: Colorado, elderly, immigrants, Old Age Pension, reform, refugees, resettlement | Leave a Comment »
Posted by Christopher Coen on October 4, 2011
Freshman Sen. Rand Paul, a Kentucky Republican and co-founder of the Senate Tea Party Caucus, is blocking the bill that would extend funding for one year for about 5,600 elderly and disabled refugees. The bill seeks to extend social security benefits for these refugees, many of whom have been unable to pass the US citizenship test due to language barriers associated with frailties. These refugees lost these meager benefits — used to pay basic living expenses — as of September 30th. An article in POLITICO tells more:
Freshman Sen. Rand Paul is blocking a bill that Senate leaders tried to pass by a voice vote Monday, delaying $36 million in benefits for elderly and disabled refugees, POLITICO has learned.
The funding ran out at the end of the fiscal year on Friday.
Paul, a Kentucky Republican and co-founder of the Senate Tea Party Caucus, placed a hold on the bill after Democratic leaders reached an agreement with other Republicans to offset the funding with fee increases for immigrants seeking visas.
In a statement to POLITICO on Tuesday, Paul confirmed he was blocking the bill over concerns the money could be used to aid domestic terrorists. Two alleged terrorists, who came to the U.S. through a refugee program and were receiving welfare benefits, were arrested this year in Paul’s hometown of Bowling Green, Ky.
“This incident alone raises serious questions about the system through which they came to the United States, and I am insisting on a full investigation on our practice of providing welfare to refugees,” Paul said. “Legislation of this importance should not be passed without sufficient debate and a presentation of the information found from this investigation.”…
…Schumer and other Democratic sponsors worked out a deal Friday with Sen. Tom Coburn (R-Okla.), who had blocked the legislation over concerns about costs. Coburn agreed to lift his hold after Democrats proposed a new $30 fee for individuals applying to enter the country through a visa lottery program. That fee would more than pay for the refugee benefits, cutting the deficit by $24 million.
But Paul’s hold was a surprise to even Schumer, who announced on the floor Monday that the Senate would pass the bill that night by a voice vote… Read more here
When I read this article I was expecting to discover that the reason Paul Rand was opposing the bill was a principled stand against fee increases, as just another type of tax. Naive me. Instead he risks putting vulnerable people out onto the streets as some form of protest in response to the US Department of Homeland Security letting two alleged terrorists resettle to Tennessee, even though the agency had information that should have prevented it. So, punish Homeland Security by abandoning elderly and disabled people?
Posted in disabled refugees, elderly refugees, funding, Kentucky, right-wing, SSI | Tagged: disabled, elderly, Rand Paul, refugees, resettlement, social security disability, SSI, Tea Party, welfare | Leave a Comment »
Christopher Coen
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