I can’t figure out exactly what the organization the United States Association for the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees does. I don’t think it’s a resettlement agency, maybe just a public relations firm for the UN? I never heard of them before. But their head honcho recently told an audience at the University of Nebraska that Nebraska and Iowa were great for refugees because there were lots of industries there that need cheap labor (you know like meatpackers), cities are large enough for refugees to blend into, and there is a sufficient number of non-profit groups (funded by taxpayers) that can get the refugees plugged into welfare. Well, he didn’t exactly use those words, but this is what he said that was posted at the Omaha World Herald:
Omaha, Lincoln and Des Moines are likely to host more resettled refugees for two reasons, an expert said Tuesday in Omaha.
There are more than 40 million displaced people in the world today — more than 10 times as many as at the end of World War II, said Marc Breslaw, executive director of the United States Association for the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees.
And, he said in an interview, a “critical equation” that has made Nebraska and Iowa cities havens for refugees from such places as Vietnam, Bosnia, Sudan and Myanmar will continue to make the cities attractive for refugee resettlement.
Nebraska and Iowa have industries that can employ people, Breslaw said. The cities are large enough to be accepting of foreigners. And they have a well-developed network of nongovernmental social services programs.
We have many posts about Iowa and Nebraska. If you recall, in Nebraska we had all those problems with the Somalis in Grand Island disrupting the the town and the meatpacking plants there. Here is just one story on that to get you started. I betcha Mr. Breslaw never mentioned any of this to the students at the Univ. of Nebraska.