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US and Global Refugee Protection System

CMS’s work on refugee protection addresses a series of issues that has been of consuming international, state, and local policy interest. These include: addressing the multiple crises driving record levels of forced displacement; identifying long-term solutions for refugees and their host communities; the scope of international law; protection of refugee-like populations that may not meet the 1951 Convention’s definition of “refugee”; legal and policy barriers to protection; and the debates and struggles of host communities to accommodate the uprooted. CMS has also taken a person-centered approach to this work, regularly engaging refugees and asylum-seekers in its processes and events. In 2014 and 2015, CMS coordinated a series of meetings and events on strengthening the US refugee protection system which led to a special edition of its Journal on Migration and Human Security (JMHS), commemorating the 35th anniversary of the Refugee Act of 1980. The papers in this collection exhaustively documented, critiqued, and proposed improvements to the US refugee protection system.

Building on this initiative, in 2016, CMS organized a high-level conference – with support from the MacArthur Foundation  – on rethinking and strengthening the global system of refugee protection. According to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), global forced displacement reached historic levels in 2017, with 68.5 million displaced, including 40 million internally displaced persons, 25.4 million refugees, and 3.1 million asylum seekers. Moreover, many of the large refugee-producing conditions and crises have shown few signs of abating. The CMS project was closely aligned with the UN Summit on Addressing Large Movements of Refugees and Migrants on September 19, 2016. CMS also hosted a listening session with refugees for the Special Adviser to the Summit, Karen AbuZayd, and organized a public event in Washington, DC with US and UN officials on Syrian and Iraqi refugees. In addition, CMS commissioned a unique series of expert papers designed to lift up new research, create a strong evidence-base for reform, and present new and promising policy ideas that will survive the two summits. In March 2018, it released a special JMHS edition based on these papers titled, “Strengthening the Global Refugee Protection System.” It rolled out in a series of events and briefings, designed to inform the development of the Global Compact on Refugees.

CMS also regularly produces reports and blogs on refugee issues, including a report on a fact-finding trip to Lebanon, Jordan, Iraq and Greece; a study on returnees to the Northern Triangle states of Central America; a first-hand report on the Venezuelan refugee crisis; and an extensive analysis released in July, 2018 on the US refugee resettlement program. CMS has also regularly reported on attacks on the US refugee protection system, including asylum and temporary protection, by the Trump administration. This work will continue into the foreseeable future.

Publications
Date of Publication:September 7, 2021Authors: Susan Martin Getting Refugees Out of Afghanistan
Many comparisons have been made in the past few weeks between the evacuation of Americans and Vietnamese from Saigon in 1975 and the exit from Afghanistan in 2021. Although many of these comparisons are valid, the commentaries miss a more apt point of comparison—the global response to the flight of Indochinese refugees in 1979. The refugee crisis had been growing since 1978 when the communist government in Hanoi increased internal relocations and expulsions of ethnic Chinese citizens from its territory. By the end of 1979, more than 450,000 ethnic Chinese had left Vietnam. They were joined by political prisoners, family members of those who had fled in 1975, and others opposed to the governing regime. At the same time, departures from Laos had also increased, as did movements to the Thai-Cambodian border after the defeat of the Khmer Rouge government and the occupation of Cambodia by Vietnam....
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Date of Publication:May 17, 2021Authors: Christopher P. Isajiw Forced and Trafficked Workers of Mali
Mali, one of the poorest countries in West Africa, is nonetheless resource-rich in global commodities such as oil and gold. Gold is Mali’s primary export, and the industry surrounding it attracts many at-risk migrant laborers to work in “artisanal mining.” This “mining” consists of women, children, and men panhandling in rivers for meager quantities of gold. Many of these migrants are also refugees from ongoing conflicts in Mali, Nigeria, and Senegal. They are lured to Mali with promises of good-paying work and relocation to Europe but are subsequently trapped by gangs, including some religious extremist groups such as Al Qaeda “affiliates.” Job seekers are forced to work to “pay off” false debts to these gangs. Many laborers are trafficked and forced to become sex workers. Civil society and NGOs like Caritas Mali and the International Catholic Migration Commission (ICMC) may be best positioned to address the needs of Mali’s trafficked workers and prevent labor abuse....
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Date of Publication:April 19, 2021Authors: Susan Martin The Next Presidential Determination on Refugee Resettlement: The Time to Act is Now
On Friday, April 16, President Joseph Biden issued a long-awaited “Memorandum for the Secretary of State on the Emergency Presidential Determination on Refugee Admissions for Fiscal Year 2021.” The Emergency Presidential Determination (PD) failed to deliver on the president’s promise to raise the ceiling on refugee admissions from the historically low level of 15,000 set by President Trump to 62,500 during this fiscal year, and it caused more obfuscation than illumination of the president’s goals. The White House’s attempt to correct itself hours later led to still more confusion....
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Date of Publication:February 19, 2021Authors: Susan Martin How President Biden Can Make His Commitment to Refugees a Reality
In an Executive Order signed on February 3, 2021, President Joe Biden promised a thorough review of the US refugee admissions program as well as the Special Immigrant Visas (SIV) under which Afghans and Iraqis endangered by their association with the US government are admitted. He also announced that the United States will resettle 125,000 refugees in Fiscal Year 2022 and consult with Congress to increase this year’s admissions quota as a down payment. These promises offer hope to thousands of refugees who have been awaiting resettlement, often for years and still more often in precarious settings. Fulfilling this promise will not come easily, however. The new administration has scant time to rebuild a program that the Trump administration sought to destroy....
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Date of Publication:December 2020Authors: Donald Kerwin and Mike Nicholson Center for Migration Studies Charting a Course to Rebuild and Strengthen the US Refugee Admissions Program
This report analyzes the US refugee resettlement program – known as “USRAP” (the US Refugee Admissions Program) – leveraging data from a national survey of resettlement stakeholders conducted in 2020. The survey examined USRAP from the time that refugees arrive in the United States. The survey’s design and questionnaire were informed by three community gatherings organized by Refugee Council USA in the fall and winter of 2019, extensive input from an expert advisory group, and a literature review. This report finds that USRAP serves important purposes, enjoys extensive community support, and offers a variety of effective services. Overall, the survey finds a high degree of consensus on the US resettlement program’s strengths and objectives, and close alignment between its services and the needs of refugees at different stages of their settlement and integration. Because USRAP’s infrastructure and community-based resettlement networks have been decimated in recent years, the Biden administration’s main challenges will be to rebuild and revitalize the program, educate the public on it, and try to regain broad, bi-partisan support for it. The report also points to specific ways in which USRAP’s programs and services should be strengthened....
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Recent Work on Refugees & Forcibly Displaced Persons
The Center for Migration Studies (CMS) has recently released four new resources describing and proposing solutions to the challenges faced by refugees and forcibly displaced persons globally. A new CMS essay, provides an overview of the Venezuelan crisis and closely examines legal contexts and responses of countries receiving Venezuelans. A new paper from CMS’s Journal on Migration and Human Security outlines the legal protections afforded migrants in places of armed conflicts and describes the obstacles to realizing those protections in the context of the Yemeni and Libyan conflicts. CMS has also published a new story from Omar al-Muqdad, a prominent journalist, documentary filmmaker, and former Syrian refugee. Al-Muqdad reflects on a Syrian refugee camp that was set ablaze and shares the hopes of Abdul Qadir, a father living in a Syrian refugee camp. A new video interview with Donald Kerwin, executive director of CMS, provides an informal overview and reflection on the world’s forcibly displaced persons and the conditions they face at the advent of a new year. Finally, CMS and Refugee Council USA released an exhaustive report on ways to rebuild and strengthen the US refugee resettlement program....
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The Hope of Refugees as a New Year Approaches
With a new year on the horizon and the world focused on the coronavirus pandemic, another harsh winter has arrived at the door of the squalid refugee camps where hundreds of thousands struggle to survive and retain their human dignity. Many harsh winters have passed over Syrian and many other refugees with what seems like total indifference from the world’s governments, including some who were strongly committed to refugee acceptance in the past....
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Recent Publications on the Global Compact on Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration and the Global Compact on Refugees
The Journal on Migration and Human Security (JMHS) has published three papers on the implementation of different aspects of the Global Compact on Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration (GCM) and the Global Compact on Refugees (GCR). The papers have been............
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Date of Publication:April 27, 2020Authors: Kevin Appleby Implementation of the Global Compact on Safe, Orderly, and Regular Migration: A Whole-of-Society Approach
This is the third of three JMHS papers on the implementation of different aspects of the Global Compact on Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration (GCM) and the Global Compact on Refugees (GCR). The papers have been produced by three think-tanks – the Scalabrini Migration Center (SMC) in Manila, covering the Asia-Pacific region, the Scalabrini Institute for Human Mobility in Africa (SIHMA) in Cape Town, and the Center for Migration Studies of New York (CMS). This paper argues that nations are best served by partnering with a wide range of societal actors to implement the objectives of the GCM. Such civil society actors may include non-profit organizations, faith-based groups, the private sector, trade unions, and academia, among other relevant stakeholders. Each of these actors brings unique strengths to the implementation of the GCM, filling gaps in the care and protection of migrants. They perform tasks that governments are unable or unwilling to undertake, especially in the area of irregular migration. A “whole-of-society” approach is the most effective method for managing migration humanely and in concert with the rule of law....
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Catholic Teaching and Interventions on the Global Compact on Refugees and the Global Compact on Safe Orderly and Regular Migration
Migrants, refugees and internally displaced persons have always been of special concern to the Catholic Church. Thus, it comes as little surprise that the Holy See inspired, influenced and participated with great interest in the historic development of a global strategy to respond to migrants and refugees, leading to the adoption of the Global Compact on Refugees (GCR) and the Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration (GCM) in December of 2018.  The Catholic Church’s work on the GCR and GCM included not only the Migrants and Refugees Section of the Vatican’s Dicastery for Integral Human Development, but also bishops’ conferences, religious orders and congregations, Catholic institutions of all kinds, and Catholic-inspired non-governmental organizations....
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Date of Publication:March 18, 2020Authors: Sergio Carciotto, Filippo Ferraro Building Blocks and Challenges for the Implementation of the Global Compact on Refugees in Africa
This is the second of three JMHS papers on implementation of different aspects of the Global Compact on Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration (GCM) and the Global Compact on Refugees (GCR). The papers have been produced by three think-tanks – the Scalabrini Migration Center (SMC) in Manila, covering the Asia-Pacific region, the Scalabrini Institute for Human Mobility in Africa (SIHMA) in Cape Town, and the Center for Migration Studies of New York (CMS). This paper from SIHMA examines the prospects for implementation of the GCR in sub-Saharan Africa. It argues that, given increases in the number of forcibly displaced people in recent years, responses to refugee crises need to shift from a humanitarian system of “care and maintenance,” to more comprehensive and effective development responses. It discusses how best to promote a resilience-based development approach. It recognizes that many development initiatives that have been implemented or that still need to be implemented under the normative framework of the GCR and the Comprehensive Refugee Response Framework (CRRF), are subject to a multiyear planning and implementation cycle. Therefore, the article does not seek to evaluate their efficacy or measure their progress.  Rather, it identifies key challenges and it highlights achievements and promising initiatives in sub-Saharan Africa. It particularly focuses on implementation and rollout of the CRRF in Chad, Djibouti, Ethiopia, Kenya, Rwanda, Somalia, Uganda, and Zambia in Africa....
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Date of Publication:March 3, 2020Authors: Maruja M. B. Asis, Alan Feranil Not for Adults Only: Toward a Child’s Lens in Migration Policies in Asia
This is the first of three JMHS papers that will be released this month on implementation of different aspects of the Global Compact on Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration (GCM) and the Global Compact on Refugees (GCR). The papers have been produced by three think-tanks – the Scalabrini Migration Center (SMC) in Manila, covering the Asia-Pacific region, the Scalabrini Institute for Human Mobility in Africa (SIHMA) in Cape Town, and the Center for Migration Studies of New York (CMS) – that belong to the global network of Scalabrini Migration Study Centers (SMSC). This paper by SMC provides an overview of the challenges faced by children as migration actors. It considers the policy responses and programs that select countries in East, South, and Southeast Asia have developed to address children’s experiences and concerns in the context of the GCM and GCR. Many Asian countries have endorsed the Compacts, which set forth objectives, commitments, and actions informed by the principle of promoting the best interests of the child. They also call for states to promote universal birth registration, to enhance access to education, health and social services regardless of legal status, and to create inclusive and socially cohesive societies. Most countries in Asia have yet to meet these standards. Endorsing the two Compacts, however, was a first step. The good practices that have been implemented in a number of Asian countries, the paper argues, provide a template for how to translate the Compacts’ objectives into action and how to ensure that the full protection and best interests of migrant children, the left-behind children of migrant workers, and those who are part of multicultural families remain a priority....
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Venezuela in Crisis: the Plight of Venezuelan Refugees
While US public and media attention has been focused on  Central American families fleeing violence in the Northern Triangle states, a crisis of larger proportions has been unfolding farther south. Since 2015, more than 1.6 million Venezuelans have left their............
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Date of Publication:March 2018Authors: JMHS Special Collection | Strengthening the Global Refugee Protection System
The Center for Migration Studies (CMS) announces the release of Strengthening the Global Refugee Protection System, a special collection of the Journal on Migration and Human Security (JMHS). The collection analyzes state policies in light of international law, examines refugee-producing conditions, highlights............
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Date of Publication:2018Authors: Leah Zamore Refugees, Development, Debt, Austerity: A Selected History
Global policymakers agree that a major challenge facing refugees is their treatment as a short-term humanitarian problem rather than also as a long-term development challenge. This paper agrees that refugees constitute a development challenge, but it argues that certain development policies have contributed to the status quo of refugee poverty and marginalization in the first place. The paper places particular emphasis on policies of austerity and of laissez-faire. In their stead, it argues in favor of policy approaches that are egalitarian and redistributive, and that emphasize refugees’ economic and social rights....
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Date of Publication:2017Authors: Kevin Appleby Strengthening the Global Refugee Protection System: Recommendations for the Global Compact on Refugees
With a record 65 million displaced persons in the world, the United Nations has launched a two-year process to develop a stronger protection regime for refugees, the Global Compact on Refugees. This paper draws from the Center for Migration Studies’ special collection of papers on strengthening the global refugee protection system to outline broad themes and specific recommendations that the Global Compact on Refugees should adopt. The recommendations fall into five areas: (1) responsibility sharing for the protection of refugees; (2) filling in protection gaps, such as the use of temporary protection measures for populations fleeing natural disaster; (3) balancing and replacing deterrence strategies with protection solutions, such as the adoption of model processes that ensure safe and voluntary return; (4) refugee resettlement, including the goal of resettling 10 percent of the global refugee population each year; and (5) building refugee self-sufficiency. ...
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Date of Publication:2017Authors: Alexander Betts, Naohiko Omata, and Louise Bloom Thrive or Survive? Explaining Variation in Economic Outcomes for Refugees
Despite a growing literature on the economic lives of refugees, much of that work has lacked theory or data. The work that has been quantitative has generally focused on the economic impact of refugees on host countries rather than explaining variation in economic outcomes for refugees. This paper seeks to explain variation in economic outcomes for refugees by asking three questions about the economic lives of refugees: 1) what makes the economic lives of refugees distinctive from other populations; 2) what explains variation in refugees’ income levels; and 3) what role does entrepreneurship play in shaping refugees’ economic outcomes? To answer these questions, the paper draws upon extensive qualitative and quantitative research conducted in Uganda. The quantitative data set is based on a survey of 2,213 refugees in three types of contexts: urban (Kampala), protracted camps (Nakivale and Kyangwali settlements), and emergency camps (Rwamwanja). The paper concludes that supporting refugees’ capacities rather than solely addressing their vulnerabilities offers an opportunity to rethink assistance in ways that are more sustainable for refugees, host states, and donors....
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Date of Publication:2017Authors: Will Jones and Alexander Teytelboym Matching Systems for Refugees
The paper addresses how to match refugees — who have been approved for resettlement — to particular areas, arguing for the importance of accounting for refugee preferences. It finds that matching systems between refugees and states or local areas are emerging as one of the most promising solutions to this question. This paper describes the basics of two-sided matching theory used in a number of allocation problems, such as school choice, where both sides need to agree to the match. It then examines how these insights can be applied to refugee matching in the context of the European Union, and explores how refugee matching might work in the United Kingdom, Canada, and the United States....
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Date of Publication:2017Authors: Daniel Kanstroom The “Right to Remain Here” as an Evolving Component of Global Refugee Protection: Current Initiatives and Critical Questions
This paper considers the relationship between two human rights discourses, refugee/asylum protection and the body of law that regulates deportations. It suggests that the development of rights against removal, as well as rights during and after removal, aids our understanding of the refugee protection regime and its future. This paper argues that emerging anti-deportation discourses should be systematically studied by those interested in the global refugee regime for three basic reasons: 1) the linkage between the two phenomena of refugee/asylum protection and deportation; 2) deportation human rights discourses embody framing models that might aid reform of the existing refugee protection regime; and 3) deportation discourses offer important rights protections that could strengthen the refugee and asylum regime. It concludes with consideration of how deportation discourses may strengthen protections for refugees, while also helping to develop more capacious and protective systems in the future....
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Date of Publication:2017Authors: Michael Flynn Kidnapped, Trafficked, Detained? The Implications of Non-state Actor Involvement in Immigration Detention
Proposals to shape migration management policies recognize the need to involve a range of actors to implement humane and effective strategies. However, when observed through the lens of immigration detention, some migration policy trends raise challenging questions, particularly related to the involvement of non-state actors in migration control. This article critically assesses a range of new actors who have become involved in the deprivation of liberty of migrants and asylum seekers, describes the various forces that appear to be driving their engagement in immigration enforcement, and makes a series of recommendations concerning the role of non-state actors and detention in global efforts to manage international migration. These recommendations include ending the use the detention in international migration management schemes; limiting the involvement of private companies in immigration control measures; insisting that the International Organization for Migration (IOM) actively endorse the centrality of human rights in the Global Compact for Migration and amend its constitution so that it makes a clear commitment to international human rights standards; and encouraging nongovernmental organizations to carefully assess the services they provide when operating in detention situations to ensure that their work contributes to harm reduction....
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Date of Publication:2017Authors: Brad Blitz Another Story: What Public Opinion Data Tell Us About Refugee and Humanitarian Policy
The article suggests that post-9/11 there has been a reconfiguration of refugee policy and a reconnecting of humanitarian and security interests which has enabled a discourse antithetical to the universal right to asylum. The main conclusion is that in a post-post-Cold War era, European governments have developed restrictive policies despite public sympathy. Support for the admission of refugees is not, however, unqualified, and most states and European populations prefer skilled populations that can be easily assimilated. In order to achieve greater protection and more open policies, this article recommends that human rights actors work with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and its partners to challenge the anti-refugee discourse through media campaigns and grassroots messaging. ...
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Date of Publication:2017Authors: Todd Scribner You are Not Welcome Here Anymore: Restoring Support for Refugee Resettlement in the Age of Trump
This paper analyzes the restrictionist logic that informs the Trump administration’s handling of immigration policy, and explores some of the underlying cultural, philosophical, and political conditions that inspired support for Trump. It contends that the Clash of Civilizations (CoC) paradigm is a useful lens to help understand the positions that President Trump has taken with respect to international affairs broadly, and specifically in his approach to immigration policy. The paper will focus primarily on Trump’s approach to refugee resettlement during his campaign and the early days of his administration. While there are unique aspects of the contemporary reaction against refugee resettlement, it is rooted in a much longer history that extends back to the World War II period. The paper explores this historical backdrop, and helps to clarify the reception of refugees after the fall of the Soviet Union. It also helps to explain how and why a CoC paradigm has become ascendant in the Trump administration. The CoC paradigm is at its core pre-political, and the policy prescriptions that follow from it are more effect than cause. The paper concludes with a series of recommendations for restoring support to the US refugee resettlement program, bolstering foreign aid and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (which are essential to the program’s success), and engaging the cultural underpinnings of opposition to this program. ...
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Date of Publication:2017Authors: Karen Musalo and Eunice Lee Seeking a Rational Approach to a Regional Refugee Crisis: Lessons from the Summer 2014 “Surge” of Central American Women and Children at the US-Mexico Border
In the early summer months of 2014, an increasing number of children and families from the Northern Triangle countries of El Salvador, Honduras, and Guatemala — three of the most dangerous countries in the world — began arriving at the US-Mexico border in search of safety and protection. Responses to this “surge,” and explanations for it, varied widely in policy, media, and government circles. Two competing narratives emerged. One argues that “push” factors in their home countries drove children and families to flee as bona fide asylum seekers; the other asserted that “pull” factors drew these individuals to the United States. The first section of this paper examines and critiques the Obama administration’s policies during and after the 2014 summer surge, which took the form of expanded family detention, accelerated removal procedures, raids, and interdiction. The second section examines the “push” factors behind the migration surge — namely, societal violence, violence in the home, and poverty and exclusion in El Salvador, Honduras, and Guatemala. The penultimate section explores the ways in which the United States’ deterrence-based policies echo missteps of the past, particularly through constructive refoulement and the denial of protection to legitimate refugees. The paper concludes by offering recommendations to the US government for a more effective approach to the influx of Central American women and children at its border, one that addresses the reasons driving their flight and that furthers a sustainable solution consistent with US and international legal obligations and moral principles....
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Date of Publication:2017Authors: Ninette Kelley Responding to a Refugee Influx: Lessons from Lebanon
Between 2011 and 2015, Lebanon received more than one million Syrian refugees. Already beset by political divisions, insecure borders, severely strained infrastructure, and over-stretched public services, the mass influx of refugees further taxed this small country. That Lebanon withstood what is often characterized as an existential threat has primarily been due to the remarkable resilience of the Lebanese people. It is also due to the unprecedented levels of humanitarian funding that the international community provided to support refugees and their host communities. The refugee response was not perfect, and funding fell well below needs. Nonetheless, thousands of lives were saved, protection was extended, essential services were provided, and efforts were made to improve through education the future prospects of close to half-a-million refugee children residing in Lebanon. This paper examines what worked well in Lebanon and where the refugee response stumbled, focusing on areas where improved efforts in planning, delivery, coordination, innovation, funding, and partnerships can enhance future emergency responses....
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Date of Publication:2017Authors: Susan Schmidt 'They Need to Give Us a Voice': Lessons from Listening to Unaccompanied Central American and Mexican Children on Helping Children Like Themselves
This article analyzes the responses of Central American and Mexican migrant children to one interview question regarding how to help youth like themselves, and identifies several implied “no-win” situations as potential reasons for the migration decisions of unaccompanied children. Furthermore, the children’s responses highlight the interconnected nature of economics, security, and education as migratory factors. Examination of children’s political speech revealed primarily negative references regarding their home country’s government, the president, and the police. The police were singled out more than any other public figures, with particular emphasis on police corruption and ineffectiveness. Additional analysis focused on children’s comments regarding migration needs and family....
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Date of Publication:2017Authors: Thomas Gammeltoft-Hansen, Nikolas F. Tan The End of the Deterrence Paradigm? Future Directions for Global Refugee Policy
Asylum lies at the heart of the international refugee protection regime. Yet, today, most states in the developed world implement a range of deterrence measures designed to prevent access to asylum on their territories. With particular attention to Europe’s response to the Syrian refugee crisis, this paper categorizes contemporary deterrence policies. It then questions the sustainability and effectiveness of such policies. A number of deterrence measures do not conform with refugee and human rights law, rendering the refugee protection regime vulnerable to collapse. Finally, this article suggests some ways forward to address these problems. It discusses the partial success of legal challenges to deterrence measures and opportunities for alternative avenues to access protection. Ultimately, however, it argues that the viability of the refugee protection regime requires collective action and international burden-sharing. ...
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Date of Publication:2017Authors: Gabriella Sanchez Critical Perspectives on Clandestine Migration Facilitation: An Overview of Migrant Smuggling Research
This paper provides an overview of contemporary, empirical scholarship on clandestine migration facilitation. It argues clandestine migration is not merely the domain of criminal groups. Rather, it also involves protection mechanisms crafted within migrant and refugee communities. Yet amid concerns over national and border security, and the reemergence of nationalism, said strategies have become increasingly stigmatized and perceived as an inherently criminal activity. This paper constitutes an attempt to rethink the framework in everyday narratives of irregular migration facilitation....
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Date of Publication:2016Authors: Bill Frelick, Ian M. Kysel, and Jennifer Podkul The Impact of Externalization of Migration Controls on the Rights of Asylum Seekers and Other Migrants
This paper seeks to develop a working definition of the externalization of migration controls and how such externalization of the border implicates the human rights of migrants, and asylum seekers in particular....
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Date of Publication:2016Authors: Tara Magner Refugee, Asylum, and Related Legislation in the US Congress: 2013-2016
This article describes the significant attempts to enact legislation related to refugees and international migrants since 2013 and examines the reasons why those attempts have not succeeded. It also describes American attitudes toward refugees and assesses whether those attitudes affected the fate of legislation....
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Date of Publication:2016Authors: David Hollenbach, S.J. Borders and Duties to the Displaced: Ethical Perspectives on the Refugee Protection System
This essay proposes some ethical perspectives that can help in the task of reassessing the structure of the global refugee protection system in light of the extraordinarily high levels of refugee movement and forced migration occurring today. ...
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Date of Publication:2016Authors: Jeff Crisp and Katy Long Safe and Voluntary Refugee Repatriation: From Principle to Practice
This article discusses the principles of voluntariness, safety, and dignity in the context of refugee repatriation. It begins by setting out the applicable legal framework, and discusses how that framework has been elaborated upon and refined since 1951. The article then discusses how the principles of voluntariness, safety, and dignity have, in practice, been applied (or, in a few unfortunate cases, ignored). After noting that we are now living in an era of protracted refugee emergencies, the article concludes with a number of recommendations regarding alternatives to repatriation and the conditions under which repatriation can take place without offense to the principles of voluntariness, safety, and dignity....
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Date of Publication:2016Authors: Donald Kerwin How Robust Refugee Protection Policies Can Strengthen Human and National Security
This paper makes the case that refugee protection and national security should be viewed as complementary, not conflicting state goals. It argues that refugee protection can further the security of refugees, affected states, and the international community. Refugees and international migrants can also advance national security by contributing to a state’s economic vitality, military strength, diplomatic standing, and civic values. The paper identifies several strategies that would, if implemented, promote both security and refugee protection. It also outlines additional steps that the US Congress should take to enhance US refugee protection policies and security. Finally, it argues for the efficacy of political engagement in support of pro-protection, pro-security policies, and against the assumption that political populism will invariably impede support for refugee protection....
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Date of Publication:2016Authors: George Rupp Rethinking the Assumptions of Refugee Policy: Beyond Individualism to the Challenge of Inclusive Communities
The values of individualism developed in the post-Enlightenment West are at the core of the contemporary refugee protection system. While enormously powerful, this tradition assigns priority to the individual as distinguished from the community. Based on patterns established in centuries of religious thought and practice as well as on the insights of key thinkers in the tradition of Western individualism, this paper argues that consideration of communities should receive greater emphasis. In terms of the refugee protection system, this shift requires examining how best to address the needs of communities that are uprooted, as well as the needs of communities into which displaced persons are received, rather than only focusing on individuals who cross a border and seek refugee status....
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Date of Publication:2016Authors: Susan F. Martin New Models of International Agreement for Refugee Protection
This article argues for new frameworks to more effectively address the situation of the totality of displaced persons, citing two recent efforts — the Nansen Initiative and Migrants in Countries in Crisis Initiative — as examples of practical ways to move forward....
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Date of Publication:2016Authors: Volker Türk Prospects for Responsibility Sharing in the Refugee Context
The current state of forced displacement today, with record numbers and rising levels of need, poses challenges of a scope and complexity that we have not had to face since the Second World War. Yet, if we make every effort to place refugee protection at the heart of our response, these challenges are not insurmountable. The international refugee regime provides us with tried and tested tools to address them. What is needed now is to put our collective resources and capacities to their most effective use. We are already seeing this in the recent move towards creating a proposed Global Compact on Responsibility Sharing for Refugees, as set out in the UN secretary-general’s report, In Safety and Dignity: Addressing Large Movements of Refugees and Migrants. We are also seeing this with innovative directions in protection, assistance, and solutions for refugees that are helping us to operationalize long-standing principles of protection, transforming them into tangible results for refugees. New forms of group determination, combined with community-based protection and other measures, can help to ensure an appropriate legal status while at the same time identifying specific protection needs. Protection strategies can inform frameworks for governing migration and meeting the needs of the most vulnerable migrants. The integration of services to refugees within national systems and the expansion of cash-based programming can meet essential needs for assistance more effectively. Finally, the humanitarian-development nexus, the progressive realization of rights — including the right to work, and the creation of complementary pathways for admission — can provide the building blocks for achieving longer-term solutions, which remain, as ever, the ultimate aspiration of the international refugee protection regime....
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Date of Publication:2016Authors: Ian M. Kysel Promoting the Recognition and Protection of the Rights of All Migrants Using a Soft-Law International Migrants Bill of Rights
This article articulates how the International Migrants Bill of Rights (IMBR) could be used to promote the recognition and protection of the rights of all migrants, in law and in practice. It argues that a soft-law bill of rights could be leveraged to fill significant gaps and promote an improved normative and institutional infrastructure that better protects all migrants worldwide. ...
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Date of Publication:2015Authors: Donald Kerwin The US Refugee Protection System on the 35th Anniversary of the Refugee Act of 1980
In 2013, the Center for Migration Studies of New York (CMS) initiated a project to bring concentrated academic and policy attention to the US refugee protection system, broadly understood to encompass refugees, asylum seekers and refugee-like populations in need of protection. The initiative gave rise to a series of papers published in 2014 and 2015, which CMS is releasing as a special collection in its Journal on Migration and Human Security on the 35th anniversary of the Refugee Act of 1980. This introductory essay situates the papers in the collection within a broader discussion of state compliance with international law, impediments to protection, US protection programs, vulnerable populations, and due process concerns. The essay sets forth extensive policy recommendations to strengthen the system drawn from the papers, legislative proposals, and other sources....
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Date of Publication:2014Authors: Claire Bergeron Temporary Protected Status after 25 Years: Addressing the Challenge of Long-Term “Temporary” Residents and Strengthening a Centerpiece of US Humanitarian Protection
This paper examines the legal parameters of Temporary Protected Status (TPS) in the United States and traces the program’s legislative history, exploring the congressional intent behind its creation. It argues that TPS has mostly been used as a tool to provide long-term protection, which runs contrary to congressional intent in establishing the program and has placed TPS recipients in a “legal limbo” in which they are unable to fully integrate into the United States. The paper discusses administrative and legislative remedies that would attempt to realign the TPS program with the goal of providing temporary protection to individuals fleeing crisis situations, as well as uphold the US tradition of integrating long-term immigrants....
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Date of Publication:2014Authors: Anastasia Brown, Todd Scribner Unfulfilled Promises, Future Possibilities: The Refugee Resettlement System in the United States
Since World War II, the US domestic resettlement system has evolved from one that responded to crises in an ad hoc manner to one characterized by an expansive and dynamic partnership between the federal government, states and voluntary resettlement agencies. However, more than three decades after the passage of the Refugee Act of 1980, the program suffers from a lack of adequate financial support for transitional assistance and integration services, gaps in coordination and information sharing among participating agencies, and a backlash against the program in certain receiving communities. This paper highlights specific improvements that would address these issues and strengthen the US resettlement system moving forward....
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Date of Publication:2014Authors: J. Anna Cabot Problems Faced by Mexican Asylum Seekers in the United States
This paper examines the reasons for low US asylum approval rates for Mexicans despite high levels of violence in and flight from Mexico from 2008 to 2013. It details the obstacles faced by Mexican asylum seekers along the US-Mexico border from the time they encounter immigration officials until a determination is made on their claim, including placement in removal proceedings, detention, evidentiary issues, narrow legal standards, and (effectively) judicial notice of country conditions in Mexico. The paper recommends that asylum seekers at the border be placed in affirmative proceedings (before immigration officials) and be eligible for bond. It also proposes increased oversight of immigration judges....
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Date of Publication:2015Authors: Elizabeth Carlson, Anna Marie Gallagher Humanitarian Protection for Children Fleeing Gang-Based Violence in the Americas
Violence perpetrated by gangs and other criminal organizations has contributed to the large numbers of Unaccompanied Alien Children (UAC) migrating to the United States from Central America and Mexico since 2011. This article describes the US government’s obligations to protect UAC upon arrival and good practices of other governments in providing humanitarian aid to migrant and refugee children. It also discusses Special Immigrant Juvenile Status and asylum claims based on gang-related violence. It concludes with recommendations designed to bring the United States into compliance with domestic and international law....
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Date of Publication:2015Authors: Katharine M. Donato, Blake Sisk Children’s Migration to the United States from Mexico and Central America: Evidence from the Mexican and Latin American Migration Projects
This article examines child migration from Mexico and Central America using detailed information on the social and demographic characteristics of children and their parents from the Mexican and Latin American Migration Projects. It investigates the extent to which children: (1) enter the United States without legal authorization to do so; (2) are more likely to cross the border now than in the past; and (3) have parents who have migrated to the United States. The analysis shows a strong link between parental migration and the likelihood that a minor child will migrate to the United States. Moreover, children’s lifetime chances of making a first unauthorized trip shift across different periods of entry. The findings support the idea that children are incorporated into the migration process through their ties to family members, and suggest that children need protection in the form of family reunification and permanent legal status....
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Date of Publication:2014Authors: Maryellen Fullerton The Intersection of Statelessness and Refugee Protection in US Asylum Policy
Stateless persons face gaps in protection and in many cases experience persecution that falls within the refugee paradigm. However, US asylum policy does not adequately address the myriad legal problems that confront the stateless, who have been largely invisible in the jurisprudence and academic literature. This article analyzes two federal appellate court opinions that shed new light on the intersection of statelessness and refugee law in the United States. It makes recommendations for developing legislative, regulatory and other policy guidance concerning statelessness claims....
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Date of Publication:2014Authors: Donald Kerwin Creating a More Responsive and Seamless Refugee Protection System: The Scope, Promise and Limitations of US Temporary Protection Programs
Temporary protection programs can provide haven to endangered persons while states and non-governmental organizations work to create durable solutions in sending, host and third countries. This paper outlines international standards for the design and operation of temporary protection programs, and identifies gaps in protection for de facto refugees and other at-risk populations that seek protection in the United States. Among other policy proposals, it recommends that Congress create a non-immigrant “protection” visa for non-citizens who are at substantial risk of persecution, danger, or harm in their home or host countries....
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Date of Publication:2014Authors: Melanie Nezer An Overview of Pending Asylum and Refugee Legislation in the US Congress
There has been no significant legislation related to the asylum process enacted in Congress in nearly a decade. During the past several sessions of Congress, bills have been introduced that would make significant changes to the country’s asylum laws and refugee admissions program. This paper provides an overview of the pending legislation and the changes proposed. These bills demonstrate the continued interest of members of Congress in these issues and the need for reform, and they provide an important tool for advocates for education and outreach to Congress and the public....
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Date of Publication:2014Authors: Mark R. von Sternberg Reconfiguring the Law of Non-Refoulement: Procedural and Substantive Barriers for Those Seeking to Access Surrogate International Human Rights Protection
This article discusses two major areas of concern which affect access to surrogate international human rights protection. First, it examines the procedural bars to seeking asylum and other forms of refugee protection, including interdiction on the high seas, safe third country agreements, and ancillary restrictions like detention and filing requirements. Second, it reviews the substantive legal standards governing eligibility for protection and the conformity of those standards (or the lack thereof) to the international norm of non-refoulement. It argues that the United States should look to advances made in the legislation and jurisprudence of other states as a model for its adoption of standards—both procedural and substantive—that could help restore its historical commitment to human rights and humanitarian concerns....
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Date of Publication:2015Authors: Sanjula Weerasinghe, Abbie Taylor, Sarah Drury, Pitchaya Indravudh, Aaron Gregg, John Flanagan On the Margins: Noncitizens Caught in Countries Experiencing Violence, Conflict and Disaster
Recent history has witnessed numerous humanitarian crises in which noncitizens have been among those most seriously affected. This paper seeks to shed light on the protection implications for noncitizens caught in countries experiencing violence, conflict and disaster by examining five prominent crises across three continents between 2011 and 2012: the Libyan uprising; the Tohoku earthquake, tsunami and the Fukushima nuclear accident in Japan; flooding in Thailand; Hurricane Sandy in the United States; and the conflict in Syria. It identifies factors that influence the vulnerabilities of noncitizens and presents promising practices that limit exposure to harm through targeted measures addressing their particular needs....
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Multimedia
CMSOnAir | Joan Rosenhauer on Sharing Refugee Stories
The Jesuit Refugee Service (JRS) is an international Catholic organization with a mission to accompany, serve, and advocate on behalf of refugees and other forcibly displaced persons, that they may heal, learn, and determine their own future. In this episode of CMSOnAir, Joan Rosenhauer, the Executive Director of JRS-USA, shares how JRS is adapting its advocacy for a new administration and transforming its programs in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. She also shares stories about the “proactive, resilient, hopeful” refugees she has met through her work with JRS....
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Migration Experts Series | Susan Schmidt
Susan Schmidt, Assistant Professor of Social Work at Luther College, discusses her paper, “‘They Need to Give Us a Voice’: Lessons from Listening to Unaccompanied Central American and Mexican Children on Helping Children Like Themselves.” The paper is available in............
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Migration Experts Series | Thomas Gammeltoft-Hansen
Thomas Gammeltoft-Hansen, Research Director at the Raoul Wallenberg Institute of Human Rights and Humanitarian Law and adjunct Professor of Law at Aarhus University, discusses his paper, “The End of the Deterrence Paradigm? Future Directions for Global Refugee Policy.” The paper............
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Migration Experts Series | Bill Frelick
Bill Frelick, refugee rights program director at Human Rights Watch, discusses his paper, “The Impact of Externalization of Migration Controls on the Rights of Asylum Seekers and Other Migrants.” The paper is co-authored with Ian M. Kysel (ACLU of Southern............
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Migration Experts Series | Fr. David Hollenbach
Father David Hollenbach, Pedro Arrupe Distinguished Research Professor at Georgetown University''s School of Foreign Service and senior fellow at the Berkley Center, discusses his paper, "Borders and Duties to the Displaced: Ethical Perspectives on the Refugee Protection System."...
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CMSOnAir | Donald Kerwin
A few days before the 15th anniversary of the September 11th terrorist attacks, the Center for Migration Studies of New York (CMS) is releasing a new in-depth report examining refugee protection and national security. The paper, titled “How Robust Refugee............
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Migration Experts Series | George Rupp
George Rupp, president emeritus of Columbia University and the International Rescue Committee, discusses his paper, "Rethinking the Assumptions of Refugee Policy: Beyond Individualism to the Challenge of Inclusive Communities."...
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Migration Experts Series | Susan F. Martin
Susan F. Martin, Donald G. Herzberg Professor Emeritus in International Migration at Georgetown University, discusses her paper, "New Models of International Agreement for Refugee Protection."...
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Highlights | Rethinking the Global Refugee Protection System Conference
A first look at “Rethinking the Global Refugee Protection System,” a conference hosted by the Center for Migration Studies of New York (CMS) from July 6 to 7, 2016 at the SUNY Global Center in New York City..........
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2015 Academic & Policy Symposium - Recent Trends in Asylum Protection in the United States
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2015 Academic & Policy Symposium - Immigration's Enigma Principle: Protection and Paradox
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2015 Academic & Policy Symposium - Refugees: Access to Protection and Durable Solutions
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2014 Refugee Protection Symposium: Session One
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2014 Refugee Protection Symposium: Session Two
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2014 Refugee Protection Symposium: Session Three
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2014 Refugee Protection Symposium: Session Four
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2014 Refugee Protection Symposium: Session Five
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