U.S COMMITTEE FOR REFUGEES AND IMMIGRANTS
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The Refugee Act of 1980: Needed Now More Than Ever

March 17, 2025

The Refugee Act of 1980 was born from bipartisan efforts to respond to the needs of victims of persecution, creating a pathway for them to become an American. A landmark piece of legislation, it fundamentally shaped U.S. refugee policy. The Act defined a refugee as someone with a ‘well-founded fear of persecution’ and established a formal system of resettlement.

Today, 45 years later, more people need refuge than ever before. Over 122 million people are forcibly displaced due to persecution, conflict, violence, and other human rights violations.

Since the passage of the Refugee Act, more than three million refugees have found a new home in the United States. At USCRI, we have welcomed over 400,000 of these new Americans, witnessing their incredible journeys and triumph as they start new businesses, take the oath of citizenship, join the Armed Forces and contribute meaningfully to their communities.

“Beside the law, resettling refugees is our moral duty,” reflects Eskinder Negash, USCRI President and CEO. “It is a duty owed not only to the stranger in need, but a duty we owe to ourselves, for the sake of our own humanity.”

Marking the passage of the legislation, its author, Senator Edward M. Kennedy remarked: “For the tens of thousands of dispossessed and homeless people around the world, the Statue of Liberty means more today than just a symbol of a better life, it may mean life itself.”

On this historic anniversary of the passage of the Refugee Act, USCRI urges Congress to again, protect the uprooted victims of persecution and offer a chance at life to those seeking refuge.

USCRI, founded in 1911, is a non-governmental, not-for-profit international organization committed to working on behalf of refugees and immigrants and their transition to a dignified life.

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