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Nico Bartello

Prof. Anyango

Seminar in Composition: Diversity

21 February 2023

Refugee Housing and the Importance

The topic I’ve chosen for this research paper is housing. I came to this decision of the

housing subtopic because it’s the most applicable to my major and is one of the most interesting

topics when it comes to immigration and refugees. I always was interested in what it was like

for my great-grandparents when they immigrated from Italy, so this topic would give me more

background and a connection to them that I didn’t have beforehand. This isn’t even

acknowledging the other half of the story, unlike my great-grandparents who weren’t running

from hostile forces or for any other malicious reasons there are plenty of people who are. This is

important to me because it isn’t just someone who decided to move to the U.S. it is someone

who didn’t have the choice and now needs help finding things in the U.S. such as housing. This

provides me with more motivation and desire to help these people that just need a safety net to

navigate the United States.

There are plenty of effects of refugees when it comes to housing. Homelessness has a

significant impact on refugees who could have already been going through trauma, stress, or

other issues from leaving their home country. A house provides refugees with a place to make

their own and feel comfortable living in. In the article about housing refugees in the United

Kingdom, they state, “Housing is critical as it provides shelter and security, and a base from

which both community and social connections are made, education and employment links are

secured, and from which wellbeing grows” (Brown). Housing also allows refugees to invite
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people over for dinner or as a house to grow social connections that they would have a harder

time without. Housing is also a part of your basic human rights which is one of the most easily

violated rights that exist. The united nations article states, “People on the move, whether they

are refugees, asylum-seekers, internally displaced persons (IDPs) or migrants, are particularly

vulnerable to a range of human rights violations, including violations of the right to adequate

housing.” (Migration and Right to Housing). As stated in this article, “Homeless refugee youth

experience high rates of traumatic and adverse experiences, a significant burden of mental

health needs, and compounded barriers in accessing support services.” (Khan). This provides

clear supportive evidence of the fact that refugee housing is important and needs to be taken

more seriously by the government and people in general. It also supports the fact that there also

needs to be more programs to support the mental health of refugees which is one of the most

underlooked factors when it comes to refugees. These mental health issues are even more

present in youth which is evident from this study that examined the mental health of youth

refugees. It stated that “Homeless refugee youth endorse a high burden of mental health needs,

as evidenced by a 26.7% rate of suicide attempts and a 25.9% rate of traumatic experiences

among homeless newcomer youth sampled in Toronto” (Khan). This shows that not only do

these mental health issues get in the way of everyday life but it also causes an increase in

suicide among young refugees. Homelessness among refugees isn’t something that should be

looked over, there must be a system in place that would provide housing and would reduce

mental health issues and suicide rates.

Secondly, it's also relevant to address the stigmatization and discrimination that

homeless people face in general. The primary problem with homelessness and discrimination is

the fact that most people perceive being homeless as controllable. This is evident in the article
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from the National Library of Medicine where they stated, “ Because housing status is perceived

as somewhat under an individual’s control, whereby the homeless are often considered to be

responsible for their lack of adequate housing, homeless individuals are likely to face highly

legitimized forms of discrimination, amplifying negative well-being consequences.”

(Johnstone). Since this can also amplify negative well being it connects to the previous evidence

of how homelessness can affect mental health. Being constantly discriminated against or

stigmatized can put your day in a negative light every time causing a constant state of

depression.

Thirdly, it's crucial to give some background on other housing programs that have been

put in place in the past. I’ll start this adventure by looking at the housing program put in place in

Berlin, Germany. In Berlin, they have 3 primary types of refugee housing which are emergency

shelters, communal dwellings, and finally rental housing. Emergency shelters are used to try

and reduce homelessness as much as possible, making them just mass residences, refugees are

also required to stay there for six weeks to six months (Soederberg 4). After they have finished

their time in the emergency shelter they are allowed to move into communal shelters or

permanent housing with permanent housing being the most unattainable out of the rest. While

this system has many flaws such as the overcrowded, unhealthy, and unsafe emergency shelters

to the borderline completely unattainable permanent housing it still at least contains structure,

unlike the U.S. ( Soederberg 4). Relying on religious organizations to handle how refugees are

handled once in the U.S. is not a viable plan, this is because it leaves it completely unregulated

and doesn’t guarantee any safety for these new residents. I agree that the government shouldn’t

control all things at all times but there is a time and place when there should be some regulation

and safety nets for completely vulnerable people such as refugees. Another main point brought
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up throughout the paper is how a quick influx of refugees can cause a backlog and clog these

government-run systems, and the paper states that “A more effective solution to dealing with

the influx of refugees was found in the non-business sector. […] Without the dedication of these

groups and organizations, many refugees arriving in Berlin during the summer and autumn of

2015 would have been homeless. “ (Soederberg 8). This aforementioned information goes

against a completely government-run system, but in turn, actually supports a system in which a

good amalgamation of government safety nets and privatized organizations can handle refugees

better.

Subsequently, there is also the issue that most countries don’t utilize all of their

available housing resources because plenty of people prefer to live in overly large houses that

they don’t necessarily need. That being said, there are times when private housing can be

utilized to save some refugees from being homeless. This is present in the paper about refugees

and Sweden where they stated, “More precisely, due to rent control, tenants tend to live in

apartments that are too big for their circumstances. [...] The answer can be found in a recent

survey that concluded that 31 percent of Swedish households are willing to accommodate

refugees in their homes.” (Andersson 4). This shows that at least concerning Sweden there are

plenty of good people in the world that would willingly allow refugees to stay at their residence

if they had the extra space. There is also the prevalent issue of aging populations, where there is

a surplus of larger homes that younger kids may have moved out of in the past. This could

possibly be fixed by more education and programs to assist older couples to move into smaller

houses. While this should not be the only way for refugees to be housed it is a good way to

more efficiently use extra spacing in housing rather than just wasting it.
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Following, there are plenty of other barriers that can slow down or completely block a

refugee's access to housing. This is brought up in the paper about refugee experiences in

Hamilton, Ontario. They stated, “ The three most common structural barriers that participants

mentioned that are unique to refugee claimants are the inability to work while they await their

work permit, their lack of experience in the Canadian housing market, and a social insurance

number (SIN) that identified their status.” (Schneider). They then stated how the inability to

work was the most unique barrier for refugees to get past. This is because usually only the

people who cannot afford to live off of their previous earnings are allowed to get work permits.

That compounded with the fact that it takes around 2 years for the Immigration and Refugee

Board or IRB to confirm someone as a refugee. This means that during those 2 years that they

are waiting to work they cannot, leaving them without any source of income.

Affordability is a necessary issue to look at when it comes to refugee housing. Limited

financial resources will make it more difficult for refugees to find affordable housing options.

This could and has led to overcrowding, worse housing, and even homelessness. Governments

and organizations should prioritize affordable housing options for refugees, while also taking

into account their unique financial situations. Subsidies may also be necessary. Housing policies

should also consider the specific needs of refugees, such as larger households or language

barriers. This will ensure that they can find suitable and affordable housing options. Addressing

affordability can help refugees build a stable and secure life in their new home country.

Finally, housing is one of the most important pieces when it comes to refugees and

immigrants leaving their homes, it is a human right that is too commonly accepted to be

violated. Going through this paper has broadened my perspective on how difficult it is to get

housing as a refugee and immigrant and what the effects are on someone homeless. Some
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changes need to be made so that everyone has an opportunity to get safe, affordable housing.

This also opened my eyes to what it could have been like for my great-grandparents which have

made me more thankful that they didn’t have to face any of these borderline-impossible

challenges and were able to find housing.

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Work Cited

Andersson, Tommy, and Lars Ehlers. “Assigning Refugees to Landlords in Sweden: Efficient,

Stable, and Maximum Matchings.” The Scandinavian Journal of Economics, vol. 122, no. 3,

2020, pp. 937–65, https://doi.org/10.1111/sjoe.12362.

Brown, Philip, et al. “The Impact of Housing on Refugees: An Evidence Synthesis.”

Housing Studies, vol. ahead-of-print, no. ahead-of-print, 2022, pp. 1–45,

https://doi.org/10.1080/02673037.2022.2045007.

Johnstone, Melissa, et al. “Discrimination and Well-Being amongst the Homeless: The Role

of Multiple Group Membership.” Frontiers in Psychology, U.S. National Library of

Medicine, 1 June 2015, https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4450171/.

Khan, Bushra M., et al. “Perspectives of Refugee Youth Experiencing Homelessness: A

Qualitative Study of Factors Impacting Mental Health and Resilience.” Frontiers, Frontiers,

5 May 2022,

https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyt.2022.917200/full#:~:text=Homeless

%20refugee%20youth%20experience%20high,vulnerabilities%20faced%20by%20this

%20subgroup.

“Migration and the Right to Housing.” OHCHR, https://www.ohchr.org/en/special-

procedures/sr-housing/migration-and-right-housing#:~:text=Article%202%20of%20the

%20Pinheiro,were%20arbitrarily%20or%20unlawfully%20deprived.%E2%80%9D.
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Schneider, Heidi, and K. Bruce Newbold. “Housing and the Resettlement Experiences of

Refugee Claimants in Hamilton, Ontario.” Housing Studies, vol. ahead-of-print, no. ahead-

of-print, 2022, pp. 1–22, https://doi.org/10.1080/02673037.2022.2149706.

Soederberg, Susanne. “Governing Global Displacement in Austerity Urbanism: The Case of

Berlin’s Refugee Housing Crisis: Governing Global Displacement: Housing Refugees in

Berlin.” Development and Change, vol. 50, no. 4, 2019, pp. 923–47,

https://doi.org/10.1111/dech.12455.