Vietnamese resettlement program

Syrian refugees are also in Lebanon, Jordan, and Iraq. Vietnamese refugees were initially scattered throughout the country in wherever they could find sponsorship. Resettlement also carries with it the opportunity to eventually become a naturalized citizen of the resettlement country. A number of other current and retired IRC staff members first joined the organization after being moved to help Vietnamese refugees.

By the end of , the U. There, IRC caseworkers found housing and jobs for the refugees, provided education and skills training, and helped them integrate into the social, cultural, and economic life of a new environment. During alone, the IRC helped more than 18, refugees, almost all of them Vietnamese, begin new lives in the U.

During the 20 years after the fall of Saigon, some two million people poured out of Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia. By , more than a million had been admitted to the U. The IRC had helped some , refugees put down new roots in America. Note: Pooled —16 ACS data were used to get statistically valid estimates at the state level for smaller-population geographies. Not shown are the populations in Alaska and Hawaii, which are small in size.

For details, visit the Migration Policy Institute MPI Data Hub to view an interactive map showing geographic distribution of immigrants by state and county, available online. Source: MPI tabulation of data from U. Census Bureau pooled ACS. As of —16, the U. One-third of all Vietnamese immigrants resided in these metro areas. Figure 3. Note: Pooled —16 ACS data were used to get statistically valid estimates at the metropolitan statistical-area level for smaller-population geographies.

Not shown is the population in Alaska, which is small in size. For details, visit the MPI Data Hub to view an interactive map showing geographic distribution of immigrants by metropolitan area, available online. Table 1. Top Concentrations of Vietnamese by Metropolitan Area, Source: MPI tabulation of data from the U. Click here for an interactive map that highlights the metropolitan areas with the highest concentrations of immigrants from Vietnam and other countries. Vietnamese immigrants are less likely to be proficient in English than the overall foreign-born population.

In , about 66 percent of Vietnamese ages 5 and over reported limited English proficiency, compared to 48 percent of all immigrants.

Eight percent of Vietnamese spoke only English at home, versus 16 percent of the overall foreign born. Age, Education, and Employment. Overall, Vietnamese are older than the overall foreign-born population and the native population. The median age of Vietnamese in was 50 years, compared to 45 years for all immigrants and 36 years for the U. Meanwhile, Vietnamese were more likely than the native born but about as likely as the overall foreign born to be of working age 18 to 64; see Figure 4.

Figure 4. Age Distribution of the U. Population by Origin, Note: Numbers may not add up to as they are rounded to the nearest whole number. Census Bureau ACS. Click here to view an interactive chart showing the age and sex distribution of the top immigrant groups, including Vietnamese.

Vietnamese ages 25 and over have much lower educational attainment compared to the native- and overall foreign-born populations. In , 26 percent of Vietnamese immigrants had a bachelor's degree or higher, compared to about 32 percent of the U. About 30 percent of Vietnamese adults lacked a high school diploma, compared to 28 percent of all immigrant adults. Vietnamese participate in the labor force at a similar rate as the foreign born overall. In , about 65 percent of Vietnamese ages 16 and over were in the civilian labor force, a rate nearly equivalent to that of all immigrants 66 percent and higher than of the native born 62 percent.

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