International Institute Of St. Louis

“It is like it is so hard to be stateless. You have no rights, you have nothing. You know you are kind of like, the status of an animal…it’s that bad to be stateless.” This is how Suk Sapopka recounted his experience as a Bhutanese refugee to an intern at the International Institute of St. Louis in April of 2017.

According to the Human Rights Watch, Bhutan’s inhabitants of Nepali descent faced increasing persecution in the late 1980s, which resulted in the “ethnic cleansing” of one sixth of the Nepali population. Suk Sapopka was subject to persecution in Bhutan and was eventually arrested in 1989 and given the option to leave the country or die.

“Suk was forced to flee Bhutan in 1989, and from this time on he lived as a displaced person until being admitted to the Nepalese refugee camps in 1992,” reads Suk’s narrative on the Institute’s Oral History page. Sapopka lived in the refugee camps for nearly ten years, leaving the camps in Nepal for several years to pursue his education in India under a scholarship and later returning. In 2008, he and his family finally obtained refugee status and moved to the United States.

The International Institute in St. Louis, according to the most recent data on their website, has sponsored the resettlement of 23,967 refugees like Sapopka since 1979. Volunteers await newly migrated families and individuals at the airport and transport them to their new rental homes.[su_pullquote align=”right”]The International Institute in St. Louis has sponsored the resettlement of 23,967 refugees since 1979.[/su_pullquote]

“Depending on the needs of the refugee family, initial welcoming services can include registration for English classes for adults and public school for children, job program registration, community orientation, and healthcare access,” according to the Institute’s Local Resettlement Program.[su_pullquote align=”right”]Depending on the needs of the refugee family, initial welcoming services can include registration for English classes for adults and public school for children, job program registration, community orientation, and healthcare access.[/su_pullquote]

Over the years, the program has sponsored refugees from around the world but most predominantly from Bosnia, Vietnam, Somalia, Bhutan, Afghanistan and Iraq. As a subcontractor for the U.S. Committee for Refugees and Immigrants, the Institute works with newly sponsored migrants that have completed their lengthy application process to obtain refugee status in the United States (a process that usually takes two years) and helps them transition into life in St. Louis.

Projects, such as an urban garden managed by the Institute, allow migrants to plant produce native to their home countries and often sell the produce for profit. Many immigrants, especially those from countries like Burundi, are accustomed to growing their own produce. According to an interview from The Atlantic with Joel Walker, the program manager of the garden, when families sell the produce it allows them to become more familiar with the local economy.

The Institute also organizes The Festival of Nations—an annual multicultural event in Tower Grove Park that features one hundred cultural groups. More than 125,000 visitors visit the two-day festival every year.

This past year, however, the Institute has faced increasing challenges. As the Trump Administration makes it harder for refugees to obtain legal status, the Institute has seen a dramatic decrease in the number of migrants they have been able to resettle. According to their website, the Institute has benefitted greatly from fundraising efforts on behalf of individuals and businesses who organize runs, like the “Race for Refugees” and community collaborations like the “Love to Eat, Eat to Love” event that involved over forty restaurants in St. Louis.[su_pullquote]This past year, however, the Institute has faced increasing challenges. As the Trump Administration makes it harder for refugees to obtain legal status, the Institute has seen a dramatic decrease in the number of migrants they have been able to resettle.[/su_pullquote]

The money donated to the Institute helps fund English classes, job trainings, loans to refugee business owners and counseling to continue their mission to “help immigrants and their families be productive Americans and to champion ethnic diversity as a cultural and economic strength.” For Suk and thousands of others, the Institute has and will continue to provide the resources to make the difficult transition to a new country and a new life easier. Suk has gained American citizenship and now works as a workforce solutions employment specialist at the Institute. He is one of the many success stories of refugees who have paved a better life for themselves and for their families after having to leave their homes behind.

“(It was) a time of emotion, it is like a time of greatest respect, a time when [you] tell yourself hey, I belong to somewhere now,” Suk said of gaining his American citizenship.

At a time when refugees can feel like lonely outsiders, the Institute helps families find a sense of belonging of place and identity in our very own St. Louis. As the chance to escape oppression and start a new life in the United States narrows for many under mounting opposition to immigration from the Trump administration, we must value the dedication of organizations like the Institute. The International Institute recognizes the importance of diversity and inclusion, and it doesn’t see immigrants as a threat to the prosperity of our nation but rather as its driving force.

Megan Orlanski ’22 studies in the College of Arts & Sciences. She can be reached at morlanski@wustl.edu.