Refugees In America Essay

Refugees have become one of the modern world’s major issues. With 1 in 346 people in the world being refugees, and up to 34,000 new refugees a day, people the world over struggle on how to deal with the massive amount of displaced people arriving on their nation’s doorstep. The United States in particular is to be affected, having already accepted over 200,000 refugees, but can possibly manage the influx of over 1 million refugees a year. Public outcries such as, “How will they integrate?” and, “Won’t they take our jobs?” have been raised ever since the mass immigration the United States experienced in the 1890s, and up through the 1910s. Looking back on modern history, we can form an answer to some of these questions, specifically, how do refugees affect the economy of the United States? A refugee, as defined by the UN Refugee Agency, (UNHCR) a program that supports and monitors refugees around the world, “is someone who has been forced to flee his or her country because of persecution, war, or violence” (“What is a Refugee? Definition and Meaning,” n.d.). According to the UNHCR, there are 21.3 million refugees, and that figure only represents refugees that

This has always been the most controversial aspect of immigration in general, as the citizens of the nation are wary of losing their own jobs or future prospects. These concerns are unfounded, however. Despite up to two-thirds of refugee families being illiterate, up to 5-10% have a bachelor’s degree or higher, with many of the holders being the father and main provider of the family. There are in-fact many jobs available, roughly 500,000 that are looking for qualified workers such as these degree holders of which aren’t currently found in America. So the jobs are already there, we just need to fill them, and the projected 50,000 refugees a year will contribute to this 500,000, not fill it