Not All Asylum Seekers Are the Same
by Jim Kenaston
She likes the name "Summer," so I'll use it here. It’s not her real name, but it may offer a pleasant reminder of the warmer climate of Myanmar, where she's from, or it may suggest the stage of life she sees herself entering as a young adult.
She came to the United States in 2021 on a non-immigrant student visa, but given the current set of challenges back home, she was encouraged by friends within her community to apply for political asylum.
Summer left Myanmar soon after a junta-led coup began tearing her country apart. Christians are a minority in Myanmar. They are among those subject topersecution for their faith — and Summer’s father serves as a pastor in Yangon.
Her parents support her effort to stay in the U.S. long term. She is, of course, concerned about their welfare, and that of her younger brother as he grows closer to an age when he will be subject to the junta's compulsory conscription law. The junta, however, does not necessarily hold to the law when seeking to fill their military ranks, as seen here.
Despite those ongoing concerns, Summer has stayed focused on her studies, recently completing her associate degree through a community college. She also cut costs by living within a community of fellow Burmese, which may have helped lessen her experience of culture shock as well.
I asked her what she thinks of the anti-Israel protests that have been rocking American college campuses recently. She admits that she's not personally well-informed enough about the issues behind them to offer a meaningful response — but her experience in Myanmar leaves her skeptical of much of what she sees in the news. She is wary of government propaganda, which is rife where she is from.
Since 2021, an estimated 881,000 refugees have fled Myanmar to bordering nations (700,000 to Bangladesh, 90,000 to Thailand, 86,000 to India, and roughly 5,000 to China). There are tensions within each case and problems to solve, but these refugees have all gone to places where there is at least cultural familiarity.
The U.S. has not offered political asylum to vast numbers of Burmese fleeing that situation — but our current administration is looking for ways to accommodate "some" Palestinian refugees. One wonders why Palestinians aren't welcomed as refugees within the 22 countries that make up the Arab world in the Middle East and North Africa—but they aren’t.
Summer views the influx of illegal immigrants coming through the U.S.’s southern border through the lens of how she's seen political fortunes change within her home country. She's aware that with our upcoming presidential election, the political pendulum could swing so far to the right that deportations may become the norm. She hopes not to be swept up in a negative reaction to those who have come here illegally in droves, but that the government would see her petition is legitimate.In the meantime, Summer plans to continue her education. She's not opposed to returning home someday, but she hopes circumstances there will change for the better before she does.
I asked Summer if there is a Bible verse that has served as her guiding light through difficulties. She said it’s Luke 12:4-5, which reads,
"...do not be afraid of those who kill the body and after that can do no more. But I will show you whom you should fear: Fear him who, after your boy has been killed, has authority to throw you into hell. Yes, I tell you, fear him."
Summer is 21 years old now. I take heart in knowing that a person of her caliber is among the asylees living among us.
I hope the best for her future, for her family, and that we fellow Christians will reflect God's grace and light within our badly torn and wounded world. This is, after all, what we are called to for our time.
