by Susan Kuklin
I met my future wife through my sister-in-law. Yes, I must give my sister-in-law the credit. Rheine had been going to college here too, studying to be a pharmacist. To make extra money, she spent time braiding women’s hair, and that’s how she met my sister-in-law.
One day, my sister-in-law said, “Dieu, I have someone I want you to meet.”
I’m like, “Do you?”
“Yeah.”
The first day I saw Rheine, I knew she was the one. We connected very, very fast. We share a lot in common. She’s the last kid in her family. I’m the last kid in my family. We’re both goofy. We can get goofy, but we know when to stop and get serious. We share so many things in common, especially music. We both love music.
Dieudonné attended Iowa Western Community College, a two-year school. Once he graduated, he continued his studies at the University of Nebraska Omaha, majoring in business administration. College is expensive. He still has a year to go to graduate. Meanwhile, he started working in a bank, and then he switched jobs to be a credit-card dispute agent for PayPal.
Here I am in America. I’m getting a good education, I have a good job, and I’m in love with a beautiful woman, my wife, who will soon be the mother of our son. I’m so lucky. There was one more thing I needed to do.
Dieudonné understood from his own experiences just how challenging the transition from an African refugee camp to a modern city like Omaha can be. Some parents were having a hard time adjusting to American culture and norms, especially when it came to disciplining their children.
Dieudonné says, “In Africa, children knew that if they did something wrong, they’d get a whipping. Whipping a child was normal. That’s not how kids are disciplined in the States.” Young African refugee kids, nine-, ten-, twelve-year-olds, quickly adapted to the ways of this country. “Oh, I’m in America now. You can’t whip me anymore. You can’t punish me, or I’ll call the police.” In fact, some kids did call the police on their own parents. They started disrespecting their parents. And they started getting into trouble. The parents, working two, three, jobs in a foreign country, in a foreign language, were having a very hard time.
The culture clash in our small community was getting out of hand. What could we do? How could we help? My friend Jack and I tried to figure out a way to help. We should distract the kids. Yes! That’s it! We will distract them from the negative things going on in their heads. We will distract them into becoming good kids. And that’s how we began a kids’ choir.
After school, we gathered a group of kids, took them to the basement of one of our houses, and began singing their favorite songs. There was no keyboard, but we did have a drum.
While we were singing, we incorporated the teachings about our culture that related to their current lives. We read passages in the Bible, discussed them, and sang more songs. We needed to show the kids that while there are good things here in America, we must not forget where we came from.
We didn’t know if this would work, but at least it was worth a try.
It was pretty fun. They love music. They love to sing. They love to dance. While we sang and danced, we embraced the values in our culture.
We didn’t tell the parents what we were doing, because we didn’t want the kids to find out that we had an agenda. As far as the parents were concerned, their kids were attending a choir.
The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) reports that “We are now witnessing the highest level of displacement on record. An unprecedented 68.5 million people around the world have been foreced from home.” At this writing, fifty-seven percent of the refugees come from three countries: Afghanistan, South Sudan, and Syria. Over half of them are under the age of eighteen.
In the United States, offering safe haven to people fleeing war, persecution, natural disasters, and other intolerable conditions is a time-honored practice. The president, in consultation with Congress, annually accepts a specific number of refugees. The process for admitting these refugees is lengthy, arduous, and complicated. Many government and nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) work hand in hand to resettle individuals and families from refugee camps to new homes in the United States. Only the UNHCR, a U.S. Embassy, or certain NGOs may refer a refugee for resettlement. Then the vetting process begins. Here are the steps:
1. The refugee is initially screened by the UNHCR. Biodata (names, addresses, date and place of birth, etc.) and biometrics (iris scans) are collected and first interviews are conducted. Only the strongest candidates for resettlement — about 1 percent — advance to the next step.
2. The UNHCR sends its recommendations and referrals to the Resettlement Support Center (RSC). The RSC performs administrative and processing functions, including collecting biographical data and preparing the candidate’s file.
3. Security agencies in the United States — the National Counterterrorism Center, the FBI, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), and the State Department — review the materials gathered by the RSC.
4. Officers from the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), a division of the Department of Homeland Security, travel to the country where the refugee is currently living to conduct additional extensive interviews, do background checks, and retake fingerprints and biometric data. The fingerprints are sent to the FBI, DHS, and the U.S. Department of Defense databases for enhanced screening. At the time this book was written, the entire process usually took between eighteen months and two years.
5. The refugee undergoes medical testing for tuberculosis and certain venereal diseases.
6. Once all the steps above are completed, the refugee is assigned to one of nine private nongovernmental organizations that work with the federal government:
Church World Service (CWS)
Ethiopian Community Development Council (ECDC)
Episcopal Migration Ministries (EMM)
Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society (HIAS)
International Rescue Committee (IRC)
U.S. Committee for Refugees and Immigrants (USCRI)
Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Services (LIRS)
United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB)
World Relief (WR)
These agencies then take over the resettlement process. The nine agencies oversee about 250 affiliates — groups such as the Lutheran Family Services of Nebraska — that manage the U.S. portion of the journey.
7. The refugee attends cultural orientation classes.
8. The affiliate agency determines the best location for resettlement and makes the travel arrangements. Before the refugee can travel to the United States, there is one more screening by the U.S. Customs and Border Protection Agency.
9. Once the refugee arrives in the States, representatives from the affiliate greet the refugee at the airport and arrange housing, schooling, and other essential services as described by the participants in In Search of Safety. Because the refugee typically arrives with very few possessions, the federal government provides the local organizations with a small amount of financial assistance. The assistance is to cover expenses for the refugee’s food, housing, employment, medical care, counseling, and other services for ninety days. After the ninety days, the refugee is expected to have a job and pay taxes.
According to the International Rescue Committee, “Refugees must rebuild their lives from traumatic and tragic circumstances. The majority embrace their newly adopted homeland with tremendous energy and success. They go on to work, attend universities, build professions, purchase homes, raise children, and contribute to their communities. Ultimately, refugees obtain citizenship and become fully participating members of society. They become Americans.”
A refugee is immediately entitled to work in the United States. The U.S. Citizen and Immigration Services website states that “refugees receive Form I-94 containing a refugee admission stamp. Additionally, a Form I-765, Application for Employment Authorization, will be filed . . . in order . . . to receive an Employment Authorization Document (E
AD).” While the refugees wait for their EAD authorization, they can use their Form I-94, also known as their Arrival-Departure Record, as proof of permission to work in the United States. After one year, the refugee is required to apply for a green card, which allows all immigrant residents the right to live and work permanently in the United States. (Applying for a green card sets off another round of security vetting.) Lawful permanent residents are eligible to seek U.S. citizenship after living in the United States for five years. They must be able to read and write basic English, pass a test on U.S. history and government, establish that they have good moral character and are committed to uphold the U.S. Constitution, and swear an oath of allegiance to the United States. (Applying for citizenship also activates another round of security vetting.)
Felter, Claire, and James McBride. “How Does the U.S. Refugee System Work?” Council on Foreign Relations website. Updated October 10, 2018. https://www.cfr.org/backgrounder/how-does-us-refugee-system-work.
Pope, Amy. “Infographic: The Screening Process for Refugee Entry into the United States.” The White House website/President Barack Obama archives. November 20, 2015. https://obamawhitehouse.archives.gov/blog/2015/11/20/infographic-screening-process-refugee-entry-united-states.
United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees. “Global Trends: Forced Displacement in 2016.” UNHCR website. June 19, 2017. https://www.unhcr.org/globaltrends2016/.
United States Citizenship and Immigration Services. “Refugees.” U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services website. Accessed December 4, 2018. https://www.uscis.gov/humanitarian/refugees-asylum/refugees.
United States Department of State. “Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration: 2017 Global Funding and Projects.” U.S. Department of State website. October 17, 2017. https://www.state.gov/j/prm/releases/factsheets/2017/274859.htm.
This book is personal. My grandparents’ stories about harrowing flights from Russia and Ukraine to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, are somewhat similar to some of the stories featured in In Search of Safety. When my ancestors left home, they knew that they would never again see the country of their birth. Never again would they see their parents, aunts, and uncles. Meyer, my maternal grandfather, told me that the night he reached Paris, he cried so hard his entire pillow was soaked through. Their accounts about arriving in a country where they did not know the language, culture, or traditions are deeply rooted in my being. They had no professional skills and no money. And yet they came — wide-eyed, idealistic, and looking toward a successful future. I loved hearing my grandparents’ stories. I was inspired by the way they turned nothing but their wits, will, and grit into successful lives. There is a direct line between my conversations with the five individuals featured in this book and those I had as a girl during long drives and blissful walks with my grandfather in Philadelphia’s Fairmount Park. In Search of Safety is my way of saying thank you to my ancestors.
Even though I live in a city, New York, where many refugees make their first stop, it took me a long time to get this book started. Contacting the refugees was far more complicated than I had imagined it would be. Some people wanted to tell their stories, but their experiences were too raw, too tormented, to relive. Some people did not want their lives revealed publicly but felt an obligation to the caring mentors and volunteers who helped them establish a new life in a safe country. Those folks needed to be let off the hook. Most organizations, overworked, understaffed, and definitely underpaid, lacked the bandwidth to add another project to their calendar. There were many ups and downs, starts and stops, before the book found its home in the middle of the country: Nebraska.
Nebraska, the state of my husband’s birth and youth, is my “in-law state.” The spirit of Willa Cather’s rugged pioneers exists there to this day. Nebraska turns out to be an excellent destination for refugees. Jobs are plentiful, and housing is affordable. In Nebraska, the refugee is welcomed.
My supportive and sympathetic Omaha sister-in-law Bonnie Kuklin Horwich was instrumental in helping me establish the necessary connections. She spoke with her rabbi, Steven Abraham of Beth El Synagogue, about my difficulty finding refugees who were willing to be interviewed. Rabbi Abraham referred Bonnie to Lutheran Family Services, a well-known and highly respected volunteer organization. He called the program development officer, Lacey Studnicka, and she in turn introduced me to the individuals whose stories are featured in this book and to directors of additional organizations that played a part in In Search of Safety.
It’s impossible not to smile when in the company of Lacey. During our first meeting, she mentioned that volunteers were very busy because a new Afghani family was arriving in a few days. This mostly faith-based group of volunteers were rushing around town shopping to get an apartment ready for the newcomers. She asked if I’d like to come to the airport for the welcoming. “Are you kidding?” I said. “Absolutely!”
When it came to finding a representative mix of willing refugees, Lacey got it. She would call, saying, “Have I got a rock star for you!” She introduced us via phone calls and e-mails and then stepped back so that the refugee would be comfortable saying no. Some did. And that was perfectly understandable. But five people said yes, so a book began to take shape. Traveling back and forth to Nebraska was an enjoyable experience because of Bonnie’s organizing skills and hospitality. The refugee experience is an enormous subject, and In Search of Safety was not able to include every piece of the resettlement process. Instead, it simply introduces five special individuals so that you, the reader, can experience what it is like to be caught up in and escape from a deadly situation beyond one’s control. It is a reminder of human beings’ undaunting will to survive, adjust, and thrive.
I am honored to know Fraidoon, Nathan, Nyarout, Shireen, and Dieudonné. It has been a pleasure to spend time with them and their families. They have received many gifts from their newly adopted country. And in return they’ve given back in many ways. My life is certainly richer for knowing them.
May we not forget that there are many more people still waiting in refugee camps, still risking dangerous journeys, and still making long treks in search of safety. May we not forget that those who wait have much to contribute. May they be welcomed to safe havens everywhere.
First, last, and forever, I am so grateful to Fraidoon Akhtari, Nathan Htoo, Nyarout Majiok, Shireen Jardo Al-Hanto, and Dieudonné Manirakiza. Their friends’ and families’ contributions were also invaluable: Homa, Fradin, and Leema Akhtari; Sari M. Long; David Lemoine; the Htoo family: Billy, Eh Ku, Hel But Say, Helblu L Htoo, Helblu L Say, and Hei Blut Laura Paw; David Majiok, Nyarout and her children, Nyagoa, Nyabima, Emanuel, Ajeal, and Bukjiok; and Rheine Manirakiza.
Thank you to the staff and volunteers at the Lutheran Family Services of Nebraska, Inc., including Lacey Studnicka, LFS’s director of advancement; Ruth Henrich, president and CEO; Todd Reckling, vice president of programming; Mosah Goodman, vice president of legal and support services; and Jennifer Gentle, volunteer coordinator. This book could not have been written without them.
Thank you, Malikal Goak, director of Caring People Sudan. While fielding numerous phone calls from anxious and desperate people in South Sudan, Malikal counseled me about the history and political climate of his country. Malikal also introduced me to Nyarout and her family.
When we met, Shireen did not speak English. But one did not have to know Kurmanji to understand the suffering and anguish in her words. As of this writing, she still does not know what happened to eighteen members of her family. It is her hope that someone will read her story here and rescue them. Hadi Pir, who served as an interpreter for the U.S. Army in Iraq and is currently vice president of the Yazda Cultural Center (in Lincoln, Nebraska), was the translator during the long, emotional interview with Shireen. Hadi also provided invaluable background information about Yazidi culture and history. Jolene McCulley, the center’s program manager, gave up her office so that we could record privately. She also provided additional contextual material
about the Yazidi population in Nebraska. Saad Babir worked on the translation of the recordings. Laila Khoudeika graciously translated my questions and Shireen’s answers throughout the long editing process. She provided additional material from Shireen’s visa application. Laila Hesso, who has given Shireen a warm and caring home, helped translate last-minute questions throughout the editing process. Thank you all.
Soon after the last photographs were taken for this book, Dieudonné and Rheine Manirakiza became parents of a baby boy, Davin. With loving parents like the Manirakizas, Davin will live a happy and beautiful life. Thank you for sharing your story and for giving Nebraska the spectacular choir Umoja. Thank you, congregants and ministers of the African Ministry, for so graciously allowing me to photograph your choir rehearsal and services.
Fraidoon and Shireen generously provided their personal photographs. Kathleen Anderson at the International Center for Photography (ICP) helped tweak and print the photographs. I learn so much every time we are together.
Many people encouraged me and tried to help me kick-start this book: the Very Reverend Patrick Keating, deputy chief executive officer of Catholic Charities, Diocese of Brooklyn; Professors Johnathan Weiner and Gary Sick at Columbia University; Toby Volkman; Lucia Zerner; Carolyn Ward; Shelly Cryer; and Riham Alkousaa. All took time from their busy lives to help with leads, links, or descriptions of the triumphs and difficulties of the refugee experience.
A special thanks to Maryellen Fullerton and Stacy Caplow, the awe-inspiring professors of immigration law at Brooklyn Law School. Their instruction, support, and friendship throughout this journey exceeded my expectations. I have appreciated learning about immigration and refugee law from them. Thank you, Bonnie Kuklin Horwich, for not letting me give up. I’m fortunate to have you as my sister-in-law. I am deeply grateful to Rabbi Steven Abraham of Beth El Synagogue, Omaha, and to Howard Epstein, executive director of the Jewish Federation of Omaha Foundation. Without them, In Search of Safety would not have been.