U.S.

Department of
State will continue
use of Diversity
REFUGEE SPOTLIGHT Immigrant Visa
Program in 2020,
otherwise known as
the "Green Card
Lottery"

SEPTEMBER

NEWSLETTER
Refugee Revive continues
its partnership with Step
Ahead Scholars in an effort
to eradicate college
admissions inequality

REFUGIARTE Throughout September,

PROJECT ON an exhibition of works
from refugiARTe will be
DISPLAY IN on display in Geneva to
GENEVA raise awarenss about
the refugee crisis and
illustrate the journeys of
those who have fled
Service Trips to COMPILED BY
Clarkston
EVERY MONDAY LUCY MANGALAPALLI, SOPHIA
2:45-5:15PM
GREENHOE, JULIE ZHANG,
Join GroupMe for ride ERIC JOYCE & HANNAH AMIN
updates
 REFUGEE REVIVE
September Newsletter
Lucy Mangalpalli
September 24, 2019
GREEN CARD LOTTERY PROGRAM

I n an effort to promote immigration from countries from which low

numbers of immigrants to the United States hail, the U.S. Department of
State has made the Diversity Immigrant Visa Program, otherwise known
as the “green card lottery,” available to immigrants from such countries
(miamiherald.com). Eligibility requirements are rather straightforward:
having either a high school diploma or a minimum of two years’
experience working in select fields, and being born (or having a spouse
who was born) in a country from which fewer than 50,000 legal
immigrants have arrived over the past five years. For example,
individuals seeking to immigrate from countries such as China,
Bangladesh, Mexico, and Vietnam will not be eligible, however, those
based in countries such as Nauru, Eritrea, Laos, and Tajikistan are
welcome to apply. Eligible immigrants who currently live in the United
States, as well as hopeful immigrants currently residing abroad, are
welcome to apply. The current application period extends from
Wednesday, October 2nd at noon EST, to Tuesday, November 5th at
noon EST, and applicants can check their status online from May 5th
2020 to September 30th, 2021 on the State Department website. A
maximum of 55,000 visas will be issued in 2020 through this program,
and no more than 7% of all recipients in this cycle may come from a
single country or territory. This lottery system, however, is limited in that
it does not grant selected applicants with housing, healthcare, or other
subsidies or assistance; selected applicants must demonstrate that they
will not become a public charge (U.S. Department of State). In addition,
as opposed to application requirements in previous years, the U.S.
Department of State requires that applicants have a passport and input
the information into the application. This measure was introduced to
reduce fraudulent enrollment by groups who illegally send in
applications for individuals without their prior knowledge or permission,
and to ensure that the applicant is indeed voluntarily seeking a green
card in the United States (miamiherald.com).
 REFUGEE REVIVE
September Newsletter

Sophia Greenhoe & Julie Zhang

September 23, 2019

STEP AHEAD SCHOLARS PARTNERSHIP

With the mission of providing underserved students resources to

successfully apply to college, Step Ahead Scholars has been working
to eradicate the inequality in college admissions. In 2010, Step Ahead
Scholars was created by a chemistry teacher, Kamal Carter. Carter
taught at a low-income public high school that lacked resources to
serve their students. Seeing the injustice that his students faced,
Carter created a mentoring program called "Lunch With A Mentor"
that partnered his students with a mentor that helped them through
the college process. That mentor, Debra Nealy and Kamal Carter
founded Step Ahead Scholars.
In the spring of 2018, Refugee Revive started a partnership with
Step Ahead Scholars, as an organization with aligning values.
Refugee Revive has worked to connect Step Ahead Scholars with
Emory student volunteers, to spread the range of their organization. In
addition, Refugee Revive has worked on fundraising money for Step
Ahead Scholars, and helping them gain access to resources with
events like book drives. In the future, Refugee Revive hopes to
strengthen their relationship with Step Ahead Scholars to help grow
this program and increase access to college for underrepresented
students.
 REFUGEE REVIVE
September Newsletter

Erin Joyce
September 24, 2019
REFUGIARTE EXHIBIT

Throughout all of September, the Palais Wilson, the

headquarters of the United Nations High Commsioner for
Refugees located in Geneva, will be hosting an exhibition of
works from the #RefugiARTE project. This project, started in
2015, intends to raise awareness about the refugee crisis in
Latin America and “illustrate the journey of peoples, families
and individuals fleeing conflict and persecution” (“Exposition
RefugiArte”). The collection features a large number of artists
who specialize in mediums including music, photography,
painting, and many more. The collection has already been
displayed in countries throughout South America and Central
America and was showcased at the Librairie de L’lle, also in
Geneva, in April and May of 2018. In addition to portraying
the real lives and situations of refugees, #RefugiARTE also
provides art workshops to refugees who otherwise may not
be able to participate in art due to “expenses of these
activities” or “the legal status” of participants (“Activities”). To
learn more about the exhibition this September as well as to
see photos of some of the artworks on display, check out the
UNHCR Instagram (@refugees) post about the exhibition, or
visit the #RefugiARTE website at refugiarte.org!
 REFUGEE REVIVE
September Newsletter

Works Cited

“Activities.” RefugiARTe, refugiarte.org/activities/.

“College Access Organization: United States." Step Ahead Scholars, www.stepaheadscholars.org/.

“Exposition RefugiArte.” UNHCR, www.unhcr.org/dach/ch-fr/actualites/exposition-refugiarte.

“Headquarters.” OHCHR, www.ohchr.org/EN/AboutUs/Pages/Headquarters.aspx.

“Red De Colaboraciones.” RefugiARTe, refugiarte.org/network-of-artists/.

Roth, Daniel Shoer. “Fewer People Will Be Eligible to Apply for the Visa Lottery Thanks to This New
Change.” Miamiherald, Miami Herald, 7 June
2019, https://www.miamiherald.com/news/local/immigration/article231301803.html.

Roth, Daniel Shoer. “One of the Simplest Ways to Get a Green Card Is Back. Here's What Foreigners Need to
Do.” Miamiherald, Miami Herald, 20 Sept.
2019, https://www.miamiherald.com/news/local/immigration/article235293807.html.

U.S. Department of State, U.S. Department of State, https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/us-

visas/immigrate/diversity-visa-program-entry.html.

UNHCR. Description of RefugiARTE Exhibit. Instagram, Art by Anabella Gonzalez, Bonil, Diego Flisfisch, Omar
Zevallos, and Alecus, 20 Sep. 2019, https://www.instagram.com/p/ B2nBdgtiG84/