Refugee Protection
CMS’s work on refugee protection focuses on the conditions driving displacement, the need for forcibly displaced persons to find permanent, safe and secure homes, the wellbeing of their communities, and the array of refugee, asylum, and temporary protection programs available to them.
CMS analyzes state policies regarding refugee protection (writ large) in light of international law, the needs and agency of forcibly displaced person, and legal and policy barriers to protection, particularly for those that may not meet the narrow definition of a refugee under international law. CMS takes a “person-centered” approach to this work, regularly engaging refugees and asylum-seekers through its research processes, public policy work, and events. It has produced special collections of papers on the US refugee protection system, strengthening the international system of refugee protection, and responding to situations of protracted displacement. Its studies document the success of the US Refugee Admissions Program (USRAP), the need to restore, rebuild, and strengthen this program, the need to reform the US asylum system, and the promise and limitations of temporary protection programs.