UNDERSTANDING DIFFERENT IMMIGRATION TERMS

Refugees

• Forced to flee their homes because of war, violence or persecution, often without warning, according to the International Rescue Committee.

• Can’t return home until conditions are safe again.

• A government or the United Nations Refugee Agency grants status based on well-founded fear.

According to the Council on Foreign Relations, the number of refugees admitted into the U.S. has declined from more than 200,000 in the 1980s to 25,000 in 2022. Last year, most refugees came from the Democratic Republic of Congo (7,810), Syria (4,556), Myanmar (2,156) and Sudan (1,669). Afghanistan ranked fifth (1,618).

Asylum Seekers

• Pursue international protection from dangers in their home countries.

• Their claims for refugee status haven’t been determined legally, according to the IRC.

• Must apply for protection in the country of destination, which means they must arrive at or cross the border to apply.

Nearly 18,000 people were granted asylum in the U.S. in 2021, according to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. Most of those individuals were granted affirmative asylum, which means they had a visa or were already present in the U.S. But about 7,000 were granted the status through defensive asylum, meaning they had either no lawful means to enter the country or were apprehended as an unauthorized immigrant, requiring their case to be adjudicated in immigration court.

More than a third of asylees in 2021 accepted by the U.S. hailed from Venezuela, China and Turkey.

Immigrants

• Make a conscious decision to leave their home country and settle in a foreign country.

• Go through a lengthy vetting process to become legal permanent residents and eventually citizens.

• Free to return home when they choose.

More than 740,000 people obtained lawful permanent status in 2021, according to DHS. 813,000 became naturalized citizens that year. 85,000 petitions for naturalization were denied.

Migrants

• Move from place to place (within a country or across borders) often for economic reasons, such as seasonal work.

• Leave by choice rather because of persecution or violence.

The U.S. processed more than 1.8 million admissions of temporary workers and their families in 2021, including 587,000 agricultural workers.

Discussion Guide

1. The effort to resettle Afghan refugees in Manhattan brings together people across several factions. What factors contribute to the development of a collective purpose?

2. What lessons from this story might inform your own efforts to inspire a collective purpose?

BY: MARK WIEBE