Perspectives on International Relocation

Overview

The concept for this project originated with an interest in applying elements of geography to issues of international human rights. It became clear that one of the most compelling connections between the two subjects dealt with immigration, and specifically, those individuals whose relocation is due to human rights issues in their native lands. A large majority of these individuals are considered refugees. For these people, resettlement is a crisis, but it has the potential to offer tremendous opportunities as well as risks (Hulewat 129).

Although immigration and refugee activities are frequently covered in the media, it may be difficult to attach personal significance to the phenomenon. Rather than focus on statistics and politics, my purpose is to relate the stories of three individuals whose journeys have brought them to the area of the world in which I find myself: Fargo, North Dakota, in the United States of America. In order to provide a more extensive framework with which to relate their experiences, basic information has been provided concerning refugees, this region and Lutheran Social Services, an organization that assists many individuals in the process of relocating to this community. Following that information are links to each person and their country of origin.

Information about the author and this page

The information on these pages is current as of December 1996.

Refugees

The 1951 Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees, states that a refugee is a person who "owing to a well-founded fear of being persecuted for reasons of race, religion, nationality, membership in a particular social group, or political opinion, is outside the country of his nationality, and is unable to or, owing to such fear, is unwilling to avail himself of the protection of that country" (UNHCR & Refugees).

Refugees are forced to run for fear of their lives and their liberty. Often, they have to give up everything in the process-their homes, their families, their possessions, and their country. What awaits them is an uncertain future in camps or foreign countries. There are over fourteen million refugees world-wide, and at least thirty million displaced people within their own countries' borders (UNHCR & Refugees).

The United State of America

North Dakota

Located in the northern Midwest of the US, North Dakota can be divided into three separate geological regions. The Missouri Plateau in the west includes the Badlands, and features canyons, ravines, gorges, bluffs and buttes. Its prime activity is ranching. The Drift Prairie lies just to the east of the Missouri Plateau. It was shaped by glacial drift and is now rolling prairie. It is best suited for small grain farming and livestock. The eastern part of the state was formed by Lake Agassiz, once the largest freshwater lake in the world. This area, approximately forty miles wide, is called the Red River Valley and has some of the richest soil in the world. Fargo is located on the ND side of the Red River of the North, which forms the border between ND and Minnesota (Geography & Geology). This river is one of only two in the contiguous United States that flow north. The geographical center of North America is found in ND, approximately 18 miles southwest of Rugby. ND has almost 71,000 square miles of land, about 90% of which is used for farming (Facts).

North Dakota's population is under one million. The state averages nine people per square mile. Fargo, ND's largest town, has about 85,000 people. When including Moorhead, MN, on the other side of the river, and surrounding towns, the population is approximately 150,000. The population is predominantly European in origin, but Native Americans, descendants of the Mandan, Hidatsa, Arikara, Yanktonai, Sisseton, Wahpeton and other Dakota tribes, account for a little more than 4% of the population (Facts).

North Dakota's climate is continental. The average annual temperature is 70 degrees Fahrenheit in the summer and 7 degrees Fahrenheit in the winter. Extreme temperatures have varied from 121 to -60 degrees Fahrenheit, both occurring in 1936. Average snowfall per year is between 26 and 38 inches (Facts).