Myanmar refugees changing face of Connecticut

The Hartford Courant ^ | August 10/ 08 | Rinker Buck

[ABN 505]

Than Htay (pronounced Thon Tay), 24, who arrived in Hartford in June, is one of about 23,000 Burmese refugees who have legally immigrated to American cities in the past two years under a United Nations resettlement program. It is the U.N.'s largest such effort.

[ABN 505]

Nice to find that the United Nations is now in charge of our immigration program.

[LibLieSlayer]

Will they all vote illegally for hussein?

LLS

[WayneS]

Based on their past experiences, one would like to think that these refugees will develop into productive and freedom-loving Americans. So long as they are allowed to assimilate, this would probably happen. Of course, they most likley WON’T be allowed to assimilate. I’m sure those who run the UN “program” are doing their level-best to make Marxist welfare recipients out of them.

[Eternal_Bear]

Christians in the US need to be resettled? To where?

[ikka]

I meant “to the USA” or “into the USA”. Yes, it was poor grammar on my part.

[Alter Kaker]

You will notice that the UN never resettles whites (such as the farmers who are attacked daily in Zimbabwe) or Christians in the USA. They are promoting the balkanization of the USA.

Maybe in white supremacist fantasy land they don't. But more than 200,000 lily white Bosnians came to the United States under similar programs.

[laotzu]

Than Htay's long journey to America began more than 20 years ago

The UN is often slow to act, but when they do it is a storm of efficiency.

[laotzu]

in white supremacist fantasy land

You seem a pleasant sort.

[SolidWood]

200,000 lily white Bosnians

Most of them Muslims.

[PGalt]

Interesting article. Thanks for posting.

[Alter Kaker]

200,000 lily white Bosnians

Most of them Muslims.

Ok smarty, what about the hundreds of thousands of Soviet dissidents the US admitted as refugees? Most of the refugees admitted into the US have been white. Most have been Christian, paranoid racist fantasies to the contrary notwithstanding.

[Alter Kaker]

You seem a pleasant sort.

So I'm unpleasant, but the fellow who imagines vicious conspiracies against white people is just peachy? I'm just calling it like I see it.

[laotzu]

Ok smarty, what about the hundreds of thousands of Soviet dissidents the US admitted as refugees?

The UN did that?

[ikka]

But more than 200,000 lily white Bosnians came to the United States under similar programs.

And you have a source to back up your statement?

From here: http://www.everyculture.com/multi/A-Br/Bosnian-Americans.html

I get the following

These immigrants have primarily been Muslim, pushed out by Serbs fighting to create a Serb-only region. From 1991 to 1994, 11,500 immigrated. The number fell to 8,300 in 1995, then rose to 11,900 in 1996. In 1994, with the U.S. Census records listing Bosnians as a separate category, 337 refugees were granted permanent residence. There were an additional 3,818 refugees in 1995 and 6,246 in 1996. In 1996, 19,242 Bosnians filed for refugee status. Of these, 14,654 were eventually approved, and 1,939 were denied. Bosnian refugees settled into communities all over the United States. Most received help from charitable organizations, as well as aid from the immigrants who preceded them. In 1998, 88 Bosnians and Herzegovinans were winners of the DV-99 diversity lottery. The diversity lottery is conducted under the terms of Section 203(c) of the Immigration and Nationality Act and makes available 50,000 permanent resident visas annually to persons from countries with low rates of immigration to the United States.

Far, far less than 200,000 and, they are "primarily Muslim".

[ikka]

Ok smarty, what about the hundreds of thousands of Soviet dissidents the US admitted as refugees?

Was this under a UN program? After all, that is what my comment was concerning.

[BohDaThone]

This thread is a good example of the question whether some folks, at least, are more concerned about the legalities of immigration, or about prejudice against "furriners."

With regard to this story:

1. The UN is not "in charge of our immigration policy." As near as I can tell, WE (the gov't) agreed to admit these refugees (I think there is a legal quota for refugees), which makes them quite LEGAL. The UN ran the camps to keep them alive (as they have done in some other places, as with many of the Vietnamese refugees we took in.

2. Asylum and refugee law generally, is applied fairly equally. A white person who applies for asylum from Zimbabwe because of political persecution would have a good shot. Generally the white and Christian refugees have not ended up in camps, UN or otherwise, as they have had sufficient resources or connection with family or compatriots to end up at least somewhere (and I am sure that some of them may end up here, illegally).

3. I haven't the slightest reason to believe that these Burmese are trying to vote illegally, or who they will vote for when/if they become citizens. Certainly the vietnamese regfugees (remember Reagan's oft-repeated story of the refugee greeting the US sailor with "Hello, freedom man") have tended to vote right (in both senses).

4. There's plenty of problems with our immigration policy without trying to take out general frustration on these folks who seem to be quite legal.

[Alter Kaker]

Did a mean ole white guy run over your puppy?

Please tell me: what in any of my comments suggests I have anything against white guys? You're being absurd. I'm a white guy. My beef is with paranoids and supremacists.