Emerging patterns of African refugee resettlement in the United States

Refugee movements comprise one of the major forms of international migration in the world today. These movements are precipitated by a variety of inextricably linked factors, which make the prevention of such movements difficult. The three recognized solutions to the global refugee crisis are repatriation, local integration, and third-country resettlement. This thesis focuses on the resettlement of African refugees in the United States. Ethiopians are the largest African group to settle in the United States and they are more widely dispersed than all other African refugee groups in the United States. Their spatial distribution coincides with the regional distribution of refugee sponsors and voluntary agencies that help in the resettlement of refugees. Secondary migration of African refugees is a reflection of the availability of economic and educational opportunities, as well as the presence of a large ethnic community.