On Faith: Bhutanese Refugees' American Dream
Minneapolis, MN (July 22, 2010) - As a regularly featured blogger on the Washington Post/Newsweek's "On Faith" blog, Dr. Aseem Shukla, member of HAF's Board of Directors, has the opportunity to provide a Hindu viewpoint on various issues. Below is Dr. Shukla's latest blog. Please post your comments directly on the "On Faith" site by clicking here.
Speak of Bhutan and most will return a blank stare. Naming the capital (Thimphu), or pointing its location, nestled high in the Himalayas, on a map is the province of a Geography Bee perhaps, but not common knowledge. The Lonely Planet aficionados, of course, will wax eloquent of the idyllic, pristine utopia that was nearly untouched by foreign visitors until even the last decade. That it is still celebrated as the last Shangri-la says it all.
This country is learning quickly, however, that this last Shangri-la is, as the name implies, nothing more than a myth. Human rights groups have been reporting that ethnic and religious cleansing has left over 100,000 Bhutanese refugees crammed into a United Nations administered dusty and barren no-man's land in Southeastern Nepal for nearly two decades. Nightmares have replaced reminisces of majestic snow-capped peaks, lost homes and prosperous businesses.
We are learning of their plight as those that bore witness--up to 60,000 of these refugees--are resettled in the United States while several European countries, Australia and Canada absorb the rest under a program coordinated by the U.S. State Department and the U.N. High Commission on Refugees. They bear the scars of a displaced people--victims of a forced migration--while offering another chapter in the hopeful saga of American arrival and integration.
The Bhutanese refugees are descendants of ethnic Nepali peoples who settled Southern Bhutan over two centuries ago as skilled workers, laborers imported to build roads and craftsmen. It was there that they flourished, gaining economic strength as small business owners, farmers and even physicians. With economic strength came political clout such that the ethnically distinct North Bhutanese grew alarmed over the challenge to their dominant orthodoxy.
That the Nepali peoples were mostly Hindu in an officially Buddhist country only exacerbated matters. The "One Nation One People" policy, passed in that mountainous monarchy, forced the Nepali Hindus to seek permission prior to visiting temples, to remove their Bindis--the traditional vermilion mark--from their foreheads, and to dress in traditional North Bhutanese clothing. Their language was banned, and soon, so were they.
I attended Bhutan Night at the International Center here in St. Paul last night, where up to 6,000 Bhutanese refugees are heading. It was a night of Nepali fare, silent auctions featuring saris and handicrafts, and stories of immigration, adjustment and assimilation--the keynote delivered by the leader of a Jewish community group devoted to social justice.
The refugees at our table spoke of their arrivals and their gratitude, giving thanks on this sultry summer evening that they survived a Minnesota winter. They spoke of their love for this country but also their difficulties finding jobs--a very American concern, perhaps--as they arrive in the midst of a recession.
Hindu Americans, as a prosperous demographic, have never previously faced the arrivals of refugees here that share their faith. Infrastructure to counsel, aid and integrate are still sparse in the community, but an awareness to do more is building. The Hindu Temple of Minnesota, Lutheran and Catholic social organizations are delivering material comforts and moral support. But there are mutterings about some with other intentions. There are those whose friendship seems conditioned on Bible study groups; spaghetti dinners and Bollywood movies are mixed with open proselytization. The elders complained to me that these evangelicals are looking to exploit the discontent and alienation amongst their youth as they seek to augment their congregations causing rifts within families. They spoke of their need for unity and a desire to build a center where they could regularly meet to uphold cultural traditions, encourage each other's progress and celebrate their Hindu festivals together.
The lessons were many tonight. A monarchy, high in the Himalayas, strayed far from its avowed Buddhist principles as it engaged in the worst kinds of ethno-religious cleansing leaving countless raped and killed in its wake; a fledgling group of new refugees are writing their own American chapter; and there remain those that will exploit the vulnerable here to add to their dubious headcount of "saved" souls.
But this latest ripple of refugees--a few thousand is hardly a wave--are a hopeful influx. Last night I met a few that are laboriously retraining to continue their professions as physicians and dentists and a couple of idealistic graduate students looking forward to their turn to reciprocate the generosity they have received. I met many that are working as gardeners and those learning new trades as well. But it was Dr. Chhabilall Sharma, a psychiatry resident, who summed up a community's ethos succinctly as he quoted from the ancient Holy Vedas,Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam, the world is our family, he said, telling of their own embrace of America writing a new story of American integration.
Views expressed here are the personal views of Dr. Aseem Shukla, and do not necessarily represent those of the University of Minnesota or Hindu American Foundation.