Forced From Home

In 1990, Wilmot Collins decided it was time to flee ongoing violence in Liberia.   On his journey to safety, he avoided being killed by rebels and went days without food. He initially found refuge in Ghana and the Ivory Coast, enduring years of separation from his wife and child until reuniting with them in Montana where the Helena community welcomed him with open arms and supported him as he rebu...

"Renewed" violence in northern Ethiopia has been making headlines, but did the conflict in Tigray ever really end?   Over the past month, a resurgence of violence between the Ethiopian government and the Tigray People's Liberation Front has made headlines. While the Pretoria Agreement was once heralded as a deal that would bring lasting peace in Tigray, the recent flurry of military activity indic...

How will the next UN Secretary General navigate a world in which the rules and institutions created to protect civilians and uphold humanitarian norms are under unprecedented threat?   The commitments to preserve peace and uphold international law are at the core of the UN Charter. But as states are abandoning their commitments to International Humanitarian Law (IHL) and avoiding accountability fo...

Communities in Somalia are on the brink.   Somalia is one of just three countries where the United States has fully cut off all lifesaving humanitarian aid - and the effects have been devastating. The last time the U.S. cut off humanitarian aid in 2010-2011, the country experienced a famine that killed 260,000 people.   With Somalia again experiencing a years-long drought and facing a historically...

It has been nine years since the Rohingya people endured a genocidal campaign at the hands of the Myanmar military that forced more than 700,000 people to flee to neighboring Bangladesh. Most still live there in the world's largest refugee settlement.    As Rohingya refugees look ahead to the tenth year of their exile from their homeland, they are also facing compounding hardships: dramatic fundin...

The international humanitarian system was established without refugees informing its design, and for too long, displaced people were excluded from decision-making processes that directly touched their lives.   International institutions have taken steps to give refugees a seat at the table and enable local leaders – who know best what their communities need – to make more resource and policy decis...

For 75 years, the 1951 Refugee Convention has served as a global commitment to protect refugees, and as a tool for states to manage global displacement. But today, many of the world's 41 million refugees face attacks on their rights and governments that seek to return them to harm. We reflect on the history of the Convention, how this foundational document has served refugees and governments over...

The Ebola outbreak surging throughout eastern Congo could be the largest in history and one of the most challenging to defeat. Ongoing conflict in the Democratic Republic of Congo, significant U.S. aid cuts, and overextended healthcare systems are complicating efforts to respond and contain the disease. Worse, this outbreak is fueled by a strain of Ebola–the Bundibugyo species– that does not have...

On June 24, two devastating earthquakes struck Venezuela, killing thousands and displacing countless more – driving the country into a deeper humanitarian crisis. This catastrophe occurs at a moment when many Venezuelan refugees are growing disillusioned; the U.S. tells them it is safe to return home even as it sits side-by-side with sanctioned leaders from the regime that they fled.   In this epi...

Why did the famously corrupt Vice President of Equatorial Guinea ask Stephen Miller to visit his country? It's all about deportations. The Trump administration has cut numerous shady agreements with foreign governments to forcibly deport thousands of people granted protection by U.S. courts to countries where they have no ties and could be subject to detention, abuse, or deportation back to the co...

Thousands of Afghans who once supported the U.S. government were promised refuge in the United States after the Taliban took control of the capital, Kabul, in 2021. The Trump administration has broken that promise, leaving Afghan refugees in a state of uncertainty and is reportedly considering deporting them to the Democratic Republic of Congo. The U.S. government has further harmed Afghans by sus...

Operation Metro Surge, the Trump administration's aggressive anti-immigrant operation across the Minneapolis–St. Paul region in Minnesota, brutalized members of the local community, including lawful refugees, immigrants, and American citizens alike.   At this year's Refugees International Advocacy Awards, we presented the McCall-Pierpaoli Humanitarian Award to Mayor Jacob Frey, whose courageous le...

Despite a nominal ceasefire, life for people in Gaza remains grim, Israel continues to obstruct humanitarian and medical aid, and enormous needs persist.   At this year's Refugees International Advocacy Awards, we presented the Richard C. Holbrooke Leadership Award to Dr. Thaer Ahmad, in honor of Palestinian healthcare workers in Gaza whose extraordinary service has saved lives under unimaginable...

The world just passed the three year mark of the war in Sudan - the largest displacement and humanitarian crisis in the world.   We spoke with U.S. Representative Sara Jacobs (D-CA) about the impact the war has had on Sudanese civilians and refugees, the role of external actors in fueling the conflict, and what the United States can do to help end it. Then, we met with Emi Mahmoud, a renowned poet...

Forced from Home is proud to present our first-ever episode. In just a month and half, the US/Israeli war with Iran has been felt across the Middle East, and millions of people have been forcibly displaced within their country and across borders. From Iran to Lebanon, civilians are experiencing grave harm from constant bombardment on critical civilian infrastructure, including power plants, school...

Welcome to "Forced From Home"