The Law: Federal legislation establishing a
Resettlement assistance program for Southeast Asian refugees
Date: Enacted on May 23, 1975
Significance: Strongly supported by President Gerald R. Ford and opposed by those who feared an influx ofSoutheast Asian refugees after the end of the conflict in Vietnam, the Indochina Migration and Refugee Assistance Act allowed some 200,000 Cambodians and Vietnamese to enter the United States under a special “parole” status and provided financial assistance for their resettlement.
After Saigon fell to the North Vietnamese at the end of the Vietnam War in 1975, thousands of people tried to flee Southeast Asia. Although many Americans feared that a large number of refugees would deflate wages and create a social burden, Congress passed the Indochina Migration and Refugee Assistance Act of 1975, which permitted refugees from Cambodia and Vietnam to enter the country and provided $455 million for resettlement. In 1976, the actwas amended to include refugees from Laos. Nonprofit groups, including the U. S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, Civitan International, and the International Rescue Committee, sponsored families, providing food, clothing, and shelter until they could support themselves.
Profile of Indonesian immigrants
|
Country of origin |
Indonesia |
|
Primary language |
Indonesian |
|
Primary regions of U. S. settlement |
Southern California |
|
Earliest significant arrivals |
Early 1950’s |
|
Peak immigration period |
1980’s |
|
Twenty-first century legal residents* |
25,281 (3,160 per year) |
*Immigrants who obtained legal permanent resident status in the United States.
Source: Department of Homeland Security, Yearbook of Immigration Statistics, 2008.
Initially, the U. S. government placed refugees in scattered locations, hoping to prevent the formation of large enclaves. Once families’ lives stabilized, however, they tended to move near each other, with many settling permanently in Texas and California.
Cynthia A. Bily
Further Reading
Bloemraad, Irene. Becoming a Citizen: Incorporating Immigrants and Refugees in the United States and Canada. Berkeley: University of California Press, 2006.
Kelly, Gail Paradise. From Vietnam to America: A Chronicle of the Vietnamese Immigration to the United States. Boulder, Colo.: Westview Press, 1977. Strand, Paul, and Woodrow Jones, Jr. Indochinese Refugees in America: Problems ofAdaptation and Assimilation. Durham, N. C.: Duke University Press, 1985.
See also: Amerasian Homecoming Act of 1987; Asian immigrants; Cambodian immigrants; Congress, U. S.; Hmong immigrants; Laotian immigrants; Refugees; Vietnamese immigrants.
World History
