NO. 179
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decade: the massive exodus of boat refugees from Vietnam and
land refugees from Cambodia and Laos; the flood of refugees
into Somalia; and the arrival on our shores of some 150,000
Cuban and Haitian "entrants" in April of 1980. The refugee
flight from Afghanistan was well underway
a movement of men,
women, and children that soon reached close to five million
people, nearly three million of them in Pakistan alone.
During the six years of this Administration, total
expenditures for refugee aid administered by the State
Department have exceeded $2.5 billion. In that time more than
500,000 refugees have been admitted into the United States.
There can be no doubt that America has done its share and more
to aid those refugees who have been forced to leave their
homelands because of persecution.
An American Tradition
It is a historic tradition for the American people to
respond to refugee problems. Our national celebration at the
re-dedication of the Statue of Liberty reminded us of the
spirit of welcome which has inspired generations of immigrants
and refugees to seek new lives in this country.
Our longstanding tradition of help for refugees was brought
home for me in another way recently by a State Department
publication describing our refugee programs.
was a list of the private voluntary agencies
At the end there
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