War and Refugees in the United States: A U.S. Refugee History Series (1)

Throughout its history, the United States has been both a sanctuary and a battleground in the global politics of war-induced displacement. While its geography has largely spared it from hosting refugees fleeing domestic wars, its foreign policies, military interventions, and international alliances have often placed it at the center of major refugee crises. From the Revolutionary era to the 21st century, successive waves of war refugees have shaped American society, culture, and politics, bringing both opportunities and tensions. This article examines the significant historical waves of war refugees entering the U.S., their causes, and the societal dynamics surrounding their resettlement.

Revolutionary Roots and Early Asylum Seekers

The tradition of offering refuge to those fleeing war has deep roots in American history. During and after the American Revolution, the new republic became a destination for Loyalist refugees, many of whom fled to Canada or Britain. Still, some, particularly religious minorities, moved within American territories. Additionally, the Haitian Revolution (1791–1804) led to an influx of French-speaking Black and white refugees, particularly into Louisiana, where they reshaped the cultural and racial fabric of cities like New Orleans.

19th Century: Political Refugees and Civil War Displacement

Although the U.S. was less involved in foreign wars during the 19th century compared to later eras, it welcomed several waves of political refugees. After the failed European revolutions of 1848, thousands of Germans, Hungarians, and Italians sought asylum in the U.S. Many of these "Forty-Eighters" brought democratic ideals and progressive politics, contributing to the abolitionist and labor movements in the U.S.

Domestically, the Civil War (1861–1865) produced America’s first large-scale internal displacement. Freedmen and Southern Unionists fled Confederate territories, creating the first wave of internally displaced persons (IDPs) under federal protection. The Freedmen’s Bureau assisted former slaves, many of whom had fled plantations during wartime, although formal refugee classification did not yet exist.

Early 20th Century: World Wars and New Federal Structures

While the U.S. did not accept many war refugees during World War I, it witnessed the emergence of humanitarian responses to European crises. Armenian refugees, fleeing genocide by the Ottoman Empire during and after the war, were among the earliest groups to be offered sanctuary under growing public support for international refugee aid. However, restrictive immigration laws passed in the 1920s—like the Immigration Act of 1924—curtailed broader admissions.

The refugee response during World War II remains one of the most criticized periods of American policy. Despite knowledge of the Holocaust, the U.S. accepted only a limited number of Jewish refugees, constrained by isolationist sentiment and xenophobic immigration quotas. It wasn’t until 1944, with the establishment of the War Refugee Board, that the U.S. actively sought to rescue and resettle Jews and other persecuted groups. Following the war, the Displaced Persons Act of 1948 allowed over 400,000 European refugees—including survivors of concentration camps, anti-Communist Eastern Europeans, and others—to resettle in the U.S.

Cold War and Anti-Communist Admissions

The Cold War period transformed refugee policy into a strategic tool. The U.S. framed refugee admissions through the lens of anti-Communism. Key legislative milestones, such as the Refugee Relief Act of 1953 and the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965, expanded provisions for those fleeing Communist regimes.

After the Korean War (1950–1953), the U.S. accepted thousands of Korean War orphans and refugees, many of whom were brought through church sponsorship and military aid programs. In 1956, the Hungarian Revolution led to the arrival of over 30,000 Hungarian refugees escaping Soviet repression, facilitated by Operation Safe Haven and expedited immigration procedures.

The 1960s brought a steady stream of Cuban refugees following Fidel Castro’s revolution. The Cuban Refugee Program (1961) became a model for future refugee assistance programs, offering housing, English lessons, and job placement.

But the most significant Cold War refugee wave came after the Vietnam War. Following the fall of Saigon in 1975, the U.S. began a large-scale evacuation and resettlement effort of South Vietnamese, Laotian, and Cambodian refugees. The Indochina Migration and Refugee Assistance Act of 1975 paved the way for the arrival of over 130,000 refugees in the first year alone. Over the next two decades, hundreds of thousands more would arrive, settling in cities like San Jose, Houston, and Minneapolis. These communities transformed American neighborhoods while also facing initial backlash and challenges in integration.

Post-9/11 and 21st Century Conflicts

After the U.S. invasions of Afghanistan (2001) and Iraq (2003), a new category of war refugees emerged—those directly associated with U.S. operations. Translators, contractors, and others who worked with American forces faced serious threats and were granted entry under Special Immigrant Visa (SIV) programs. However, the processing system was often mired in bureaucratic delays and under-resourced infrastructure. From 2007 to 2021, the U.S. admitted over 80,000 Iraqi and Afghan refugees under these and related programs.

The fall of Kabul in 2021 led to the emergency evacuation of more than 76,000 Afghans, many of whom were housed in military bases across the U.S. before resettlement. Their future legal status, however, remains uncertain, as many entered under humanitarian parole rather than full refugee status.

The Syrian Civil War (2011–present) prompted a limited U.S. response compared to Europe. Under the Obama administration, the U.S. accepted around 18,000 Syrian refugees. Still, this number sharply declined under the Trump administration due to tightened vetting and executive orders banning immigration from several Muslim-majority countries.

The war in Ukraine (2022–present) has led to a new refugee wave, with over 250,000 Ukrainians admitted under humanitarian parole and sponsorship programs like Uniting for Ukraine. The public and bipartisan support for Ukrainians has contrasted with earlier skepticism towards other refugee groups, underscoring the influence of race, religion, and geopolitics on refugee policy.

Challenges and Contributions

War refugees in the United States have made immense contributions in diverse fields, including business, science, education, and the arts. Vietnamese refugees helped revitalize communities in southern California and the Gulf Coast; Iranian refugees fleeing the 1979 revolution contributed to academia and medicine; Afghan and Iraqi interpreters enriched diaspora cultures and political discourse.

Yet their experiences have often been marred by discrimination, resource scarcity, and legal limbo. Many faced stigmatization as economic burdens or cultural outsiders. Others, particularly undocumented war refugees from Central America, encountered harsh immigration enforcement rather than refuge.

The resettlement process has also tested the capacities of state agencies, local nonprofits, and community organizations. Integration programs—encompassing language training, employment support, and trauma services—have been vital but have been inconsistently funded. Political shifts have made refugee policy unpredictable, affecting long-term planning for both refugees and host communities.

Conclusion

War refugees have played a complex and vital role in the history of the United States. From Cold War alliances to humanitarian crises, America’s evolving approach to refugee admissions reflects its broader political values, fears, and global responsibilities. As conflicts continue to displace millions worldwide, the U.S. faces the continuing challenge—and moral imperative—of balancing national security with humanitarian leadership.

Bibliography

Dubois, Laurent, and John D. Garrigus. Slave Revolution in the Caribbean, 1789–1804. Boston: Bedford/St. Martin’s, 2006.

Wittke, Carl. Refugees of Revolution: The German Forty-Eighters in America. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 1952.

Foner, Eric. Reconstruction: America’s Unfinished Revolution, 1863–1877. New York: Harper & Row, 1988.

Adalian, Rouben Paul. “The Armenian Genocide.” In Encyclopedia of Genocide and Crimes Against Humanity, edited by Dinah Shelton. Detroit: Macmillan Reference USA, 2005.

Ngai, Mae M. Impossible Subjects: Illegal Aliens and the Making of Modern America. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 2004.

Wyman, David S. The Abandonment of the Jews: America and the Holocaust, 1941–1945. New York: Pantheon Books, 1984.

Dinnerstein, Leonard. America and the Survivors of the Holocaust. New York: Columbia University Press, 1982.

Cumings, Bruce. Korea’s Place in the Sun: A Modern History. New York: W. W. Norton, 1997.

Hollander, Paul. Political Pilgrims: Western Intellectuals in Search of the Good Society. New Brunswick: Transaction Publishers, 1998.

García, María Cristina. Havana USA: Cuban Exiles and Cuban Americans in South Florida, 1959–1994. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1996.

Bon Tempo, Carl J. Americans at the Gate: The United States and Refugees during the Cold War. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 2008.

U.S. Department of State. “Special Immigrant Visas for Afghans.” https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/us-visas/immigrate/special-immg-visa-afghans-employed-us-gov.html

Department of Homeland Security. “Uniting for Ukraine.” 2024. https://www.dhs.gov/ukraine.