I. INTRODUCTION

“The Syrian situation in St. Louis is like this: Imagine if you were dropped in a forest and somebody said, ‘You can live there. Figure it out for yourself,’” said a man who refused to give his name. Himself an immigrant from Egypt, the man helps Syrian refugees acclimate to their new environment and has seen firsthand the obstacles the refuges have to face.
Seven minutes drive from the heart of Clayton and just across the Delmar divide, poverty is the norm.
The streets are lined with litter, weeds rule the sidewalks and graffiti plasters the buildings. The small apartment complex on Hodiamont – home to various of the refugee families – is no exception.
These families have taken a dangerous journey to reach the so-called western ‘land of promise.’ Many lost their property – everything from houses to clothing – and were forced to stay in overcrowded refugee camps. Healthcare and food were also rare commodities during this period of dangerous backroad travel, which itself is major concern for the majority of families who traveled with young children.
But various problems still face the Syrians here in St. Louis, including the aforementioned living conditions, but they are thankful to have reached the United States after all. Khaldoon Elzoobi, a physician who helps the refugees assimilate, said, “Although some things need to be improved, the Syrians are grateful to be in the United States.”

II. THE FACTS

According to the Immigration and Nationality Act created by the U.S. government, people are able to gain refugee status by being outside their country of origin and having a “well-founded” fear of persecution due to race, religion, nationality, social group or political opinion.
Even after this status is given, resettlement only occurs if the refugee is already registered with the United Nations of High Commissioner of Refugees and residing in Lebanon, Jordan, Egypt or Turkey. If not residing in one of those countries, a referral from a United States embassy will also work.
According to the International Institute of St. Louis, it takes about 18-24 months for the application and clearing process.
Post-travel, refugees are assigned to one of ten national agencies which then refers them to a local sponsor agency.
The International Institute is one of these agencies which takes in refugees for resettlement in St. Louis.
The percentage of Syrians joining the St. Louis refugee community has grown just these two past years.

III. PERSONAL STORIES

Mohammad Abarra:

I was a barber by profession. My grandfather taught my father and my father taught me. It is a skill I inherited through my family. By the end of 2011 the war in Homs was full fledged and my family was evicted from our home. I have five kids: a girl 15-years-old, a boy 12-years-old, a girl 8-years-old, a boy 3-years-old, and a 1-year-old boy. I moved from one suburb of Homs to another suburb of Homs. There was a large urban population of over one million people with major universities in it. The city was multicultural, multi-ethnic and multi-religious. After I fled Homs, I moved to Damascus. I stayed in a place called Saida Zeina which ended up being the fulcrum of the Civil War. My family and I remained there for four months. Then once I left for Jordan I had to cross the plain of Hauran. Normally, it is an hours drive from Damascus to the border; however, the trip took over twelve hours. We stayed one week in the camp Zaatari. It was a mass of tents. We received our water in water jugs. There, I was able to work in the city as a barber. Finally, The United Nations called me. When we arrived in Jordan, the United Nations took over and began seeking resettlement for my family. In Jordan, the schools were very bad and the nutrition was poor. The United States government vetted us for two years in Jordan before we were able to move to the US. Once we were allowed, we flew from Jordan to Chicago and then on to St. Louis. The International Institute met us at the airport, and when we arrived to this apartment there were six chairs a table and some mattresses. I have been living here for almost five months. I had to leave all of my belongings behind in Syria. I lost my house. I lost my barber shop. I sold my car before the war, yet I was not able to bring any money over. We arrived with only the clothes we were wearing.
I have two sisters in Beirut and my mother-in-law is still living in Syria with her family. Anyone who is counted as a person against the government had their houses destroyed.
In this country, I cannot work as a barber yet because I do not have a license. For the past three months I have been doing job interviews with the hope of employment. I am getting by; however, this is the last month which I have rent covered. After that, the Islamic Foundation is stepping in to help pay for the rent.”

Abdo:

I have five children. I stuck it out in Syria until 2014 in a small village called Rayan which was essentially neutral in the war. I lost my house and my livelihood in Homs. I am a cement mixer by trade and I was able to work until Syria became too unsafe to live there. It took me three days to get from Homs to the border of Jordan. We were packed in a little truck with over a hundred people. A normal drive on the old Syrian highway system would take somebody only three hours to get to the border, but it took much longer because we had to drive on the backroads due to violence. We basically ran out of the refugee camps because, once you are in, you are not permitted to leave. After we escaped the refugee camps, we moved on to the capitol and the next day I was working to support my family. There was little food, and my family often went hungry. We are thankful to be here.

Dr. Shakir:

My wife, Dura’s, father was kidnapped over two years ago by the government. He was a pediatric doctor who ran a hospital in Syria. After he attempted to negotiate peace between the two fighting sides, people came and took him away. Nobody has seen him since. She worries and prays for him often. She is unsure whether he alive or dead.

IV. OBSTACLES

Though not anymore under the rule of an oppressive government and in the midst of severe violence, hardship is still the norm for these refugee families.
Immediately after moving into their new homes, these Syrians found themselves displaced in a foreign city without money, without jobs, without knowledge of the language and with hundreds of children to feed.
However, these matters were swept from their minds as soon as the first gunshots were heard in the night. These disturbances resonated from the playground across the street where the children had been playing just hours before.
From one woman being given the middle finger at a bus stop, to another man being fired from his job for praying outside the workplace during his break. In addition, during the first week of November, two unknown men came through Hodiamont and in the parking lot, smashed windows from Syrian cars.
On top of all of these new issues the Syrians are facing, they still carry the weight of problems from their time in Syria and Jordan. Some have PTSD, some have medical issues which have not been taken care of during their time in Jordan and others suffer from common conditions that can drain the money from a struggling family.

V. HOPE

These Syrians have been brought to the St. Louis area through the International Institute. This government contracted organization has supplied the families with the first five months’ rent for the refugees. In addition, they provide English classes and a special school for the children.
When the International Institute begins to stop the financial aid to these refugees, the Islamic foundation steps in and attempts to help pay for utilities, rent and other essentials for these refugees.
“We give out money for the Ssyrian’s rent, utilities, groceries and sometimes their medical bills. We spend about $275,000 through $300,000, but this year we are spending much more than that due to the influx of refugees,” said Adil Imdad, a leader in the Islamic Foundation.
In addition to providing monetary assistance, the Islamic Foundation provides a free clinic where anybody who is poor regardless of religious affiliation can use to acquire dental and medical services. The foundation offers free legal counsel and notarizing of documents.
Imdad said, “Finally, we provide free funerals to all Muslims. We only charge for the graveyard costs: grave and digging costs; however, those who are extremely poor the Islamic Foundation will pitch in money to pay for the graveyard.”
The resilience of the Syrians is undeniable. Through these obstacles, many are eager to assemble their situations back into their normal lives. The majority of the men have acquired one or more part time jobs. They have begun to move out of north St. Louis and they are getting back on their feet.
Despite all of the nativity in Trump’s America, Imdad adds, “I think most of the citizens are very receptive of the refugees.”
Even with all of the positive influences on the Syrians, there is still much to be remedied. Imdad believes that, “Everybody can help these refugees. They can donate money or “adopt” families. They can donate old cars to the foundation and we can fix them up and give them to the refugees. Finally, they can volunteer at Baitulmal, unpacking boxes and sorting the donations.