Refugee Stories

My name is Hassan Yusuf. I came to the United States in 2005 with my mother and father. I remember like it was yesterday. We came here from the United Nations. My father worked for the U.N so it gave us a leverage to get ahead of the line. Ever since coming to the U.S, I've always had a passion to live beyond an average life. The reason is that coming from where we came from, I saw a lot. I was born in a refugee camp and it was tough. When I arrived in the United States, I was...

My name is Saced Guled and I am from Somalia. I came to the U.S in 1999 due to the civil war that happened in the 1990s. When I arrived in the U.S, my family and I didn't have anything upon arriving. It was very difficult for me and my family. I didn't speak English, and it was very tough for me because I was 12 when I arrived in the U.S. There was a lot of perception that the ‘“U.S was the land of opportunity and everything is free.” That wasn't the case for me. I had to work...

My name is Ayan Abukar. I am originally from Ethiopia. Due to civil unrest, I was forced to relocate to refugee camps in Kenya, Africa where I first served as an advocate supporting my fellow community members in the camp. In 1998, I was part of the first East African groups to immigrate to the United States and I continued my passion to help others with my work in Minnesota social service and business circles. I understands the needs of immigrant families and became aware of the gaps present in the current system. I gained experience working with Minnesota resettlement programs, the Southeast Asian...

My name is Michael Yang. My name Michael was given to me during my baptism. I became Roman Catholic when my family arrived here in 1979. Originally I’m from Laos, I’m Hmong. Hmong is one of the ethnic groups in Laos, and during the Vietnam War, the Hmong were recruited by the United States to fight in a secret army in the place of American troops, because Laos was a neutral country. And no foreign government can send troops into Laos. So during the Vietnam War, the North Vietnamese were bypassing Laos to reinforce their troops in the South to...

Despite my lonesome arrival upon the soil of this great country without the support of a tribe, secure knowledge of English or understanding of cultural norms, and knowing how to navigate the system, I managed to make the most of opportunities and create some of my own on my way to becoming the person I am today. A refugee resettlement agency helped me during my first three months in Dallas, Texas. Texas was a tough place and far from my relatives and friends. I couldn’t see myself succeeding in Dallas, so I moved to Richmond, VA where I found a...