Every day, families around the world are forced to flee their homes. Some refugees leave for a better life in another country, while others seek asylum because they cannot return home safely. Whatever the reasons for displacement, most governments have a legal obligation to protect refugees and ensure their well-being. But today, the world’s refugee system is broken. As a result, many rich countries treat refugees as somebody else’s problem. This leaves poorer nations, mainly in the Middle East, Africa and South Asia, to host 86% of the world’s refugees.
Displacement caused by conflict and persecution is one of the major causes of refugee crisis, but hunger, extreme poverty and climate change – aggravated by droughts, desertification, sea-level rise and increasing weather disasters – also push people to leave their homes. Most of the displacement caused by these factors is internal, but some can force people to cross international borders.
Refugees are often exploited in the “grey economy” where they work without access to basic social services, and women are at greater risk of gender-based violence. Governments should investigate and prosecute those who traffic migrants and refugees, and put their safety above all else.
The most comprehensive way to help refugees is through resettlement, in which refugees voluntarily settle in a third country. Currently, nine national voluntary agencies, including Church World Service, Episcopal Migration Ministries, Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society, International Rescue Committee and Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Services, resettle refugees nationwide on behalf of the U.S. government.
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