How Resettlement Works

 Ndizeye recites a song that he used to sing to his students in the refugee camp:

“Home again, my home again, when shall I see my home again?”
  

 He smiles as he sings, but the reality rings through. For many refugees, home is a place they may never return. Ndizeye and Uwimana held hope that the violence in the DRC would one day stop. In 16 years, it didn’t. In 16 more, it still might not. The only way to start a new life was through resettlement.

Refugee resettlement is a form of legal immigration. Refugees coming to the U.S. are carefully selected using the most sophisticated intelligence and security before being formally approved by the Department of State. Nonprofit organizations such as Catholic Charities, which helped bring Ndizeye, Uwimana and their three children to the U.S., partner with states and counties to aid the process.

Refugees in America receive limited federal assistance. They must even repay the U.S. government for their plane tickets to come here. In San Diego, Catholic Charities helps refugees find housing, learn English, enroll in schools, secure jobs and become integrated community members. We are not letting in rebels from dangerous countries; we are bringing in those fleeing them.