Guest Lecture Dawit Woldu

World Refugee Week

Dawit Woldu, Ph.D. (University of Houston-Clear Lake)

Eritrean Refugees and Asylum Seekers in the US: Challenges and Achievements

Eritrea is one of the largest producers of refugees and asylum seekers in Europe and the United States in the last 20 years. The United States has been one of the largest recipients of refugees and asylum seekers in the world. For decades, Eritrean refugees and asylum seekers have been welcomed to the United States and made it their new home. The US has also benefited from these new Americans who brought their unique cultural and professional experiences, greatly contributing to the economic and social development of the US.
However, recent changes in American asylum and refugee policy have significantly impacted these relationships. The current administration has adopted extremely restrictive immigration and asylum policies, leaving thousands of Eritrean and other citizens’ asylum and refugee applications in limbo. Many Eritrean refugees and asylum seekers who have been working in the US in various sectors are now facing asylum denials and deportation.
This presentation provides the history of Eritrean immigration to the United States, the different political and historical forces that contributed to Eritrean immigration to the US and Europe, and the current challenges to their immigration status in the US under the current US administration. However, this presentation also sheds light on how refugees in Houston, Texas, have successfully established urban farming projects and are substantially contributing to sustainable urban transformation in the era of climate change. Thus, rural refugees’ longstanding agricultural expertise remains meaningful in new urban life worlds, it provides a sense of dignity and identity and can be shared with other refugees, immigrants and the local community. In Houston’s local life strong social networks could be built - an achievement from which we certainly should learn.

GUEST LECTURE
DAWIT WOLDU
(University of Houston-Clear Lake)

June 18, 12 -14 PM
OETTINGENSTR. 67
ROOM 131

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