The Foreign Service Journal, April 2016

38 APRIL 2016 | THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL some state and local governments created to hinder resettlement programs in their jurisdictions. We were generally very success- ful in these efforts. Of my many domestic duties, I most enjoyed visiting our affiliate offices across the United States, and meeting with refugee families during those visits. Some of them had suf- fered years, if not decades, of impoverishment and indignities as they awaited resettlement. Their gratitude reaffirmed my already deep appreciation for the U.S. resettlement program, which offers the possibility of a green card and a pathway to citizenship. I will never forget one Iraqi family—husband, wife and three children under 10—in Albuquerque, New Mexico, that had been in the country for only a few months. Because of her excel- lent English prior to coming to the United States, the wife had reversed roles with her husband and become the leader of the family. She was the only breadwinner and was the interface with the community and service providers. The couple struggled with this situation. But what struck me even more was how the wife kept repeating, over and over, how happy they were that the kids could play freely outside and there were no bombs. No bombs. No bombs! She felt secure, protected and free—the core objec- tive of the resettlement program. Since 1975 the United States has welcomed more than three million refugees from all over the world who have built new lives in cities and towns across the country. Of the approximately 15.4 million refugees in the world today, the vast majority will receive support in the country to which they fled. Less than one percent are eventually resettled in a third country, and of those the United States welcomes more than half—more than all other resettlement countries combined. Still, there is no doubt in my mind that our country can and should do much more, especially for Syrians and other refugees. I pray that our leaders will not be distracted by the idle chatter of ill-informed politicians who use the refugee resettlement pro- gram as a pawn in their political games and schemes. Instead, let us remain firm in our support for refugee resettlement programs, which reflect who we are as a people and what we believe in. n