World Refugee Day 2025: How new neighbors put down roots in Tennessee
- AMAC
- Jun 20
- 2 min read
Each June 20, World Refugee Day invites us to honor the strength of people forced to flee and to celebrate the places that welcome them. Few stories illustrate that welcome better than Tennessee’s. Four decades of arrivals have reshaped our cities and enriched our culture, from the Kurdish shops that line Nolensville Pike’s “Little Kurdistan,” the largest Kurdish enclave in North America, to the Afghan, Congolese, Bhutanese-Nepali, and Ukrainian families who now call our state home.
How The Journey Works
Referral and vetting: Most refugees are identified by the UN High Commissioner for Refugees and then vetted by United States security and health agencies, a process that usually lasts 18-24 months and is far more rigorous than any other path to our borders.
Placement: When cleared, each case is matched to a resettlement affiliate in Nashville, Knoxville, Chattanooga, or Memphis, based on agency capacity, housing costs, and family or cultural ties.
First 90 days: Agencies greet families at the airport, furnish an apartment, schedule medical exams, enroll children in school, and connect adults to first jobs.
Months 4-12 and beyond: Wrap-around partners provide English classes, immigration legal help, trauma-informed health care, and mentoring so newcomers move from survival to belonging.
Milestones that shaped Tennessee’s welcome
1980: The Refugee Act creates the modern United States Refugee Admissions Program.
2008: The Tennessee Office for Refugees (TOR) comes to life when the state withdraws from program administration and Catholic Charities assumes the role under the federal Wilson-Fish model.
2021: Operation Allies Welcome resettles about 800 Afghan allies in Middle Tennessee.
2022: Uniting for Ukraine launches a new humanitarian-parole track, expanding agency caseloads for Ukrainians statewide.
2025: A federal refugee-funding pause forces refugee resettlement agencies to suspend new arrivals, highlighting how fragile the safety net can be.
Communities that thrive here
Kurds – 15,000-20,000 residents anchor South Nashville’s Little Kurdistan.
Afghan allies – Veterans, churches and nonprofits rallied to welcome arrivals after Kabul fell in 2021.
Congolese & Sudanese – Now the largest cohorts in Shelby County.
Bhutanese-Nepali & Burmese Chin – Build new lives around Knoxville and Chattanooga.
Ukrainians – Humanitarian-parole families receive help from nonprofits and resettlement aids alike.
Why it matters to every Tennessean
Refugees join the labor force at rates topping 70 percent, powering logistics hubs in Memphis, health-care systems in Nashville and small-town poultry plants alike. Entrepreneurial newcomers turn empty storefronts into bakeries, auto shops and IT firms. Most of all, welcoming neighbors fulfils the Volunteer State’s deepest value: looking out for one another, no matter where the journey began.
Three ways you can stand with refugees today
Volunteer – Sign up to volunteer with AMAC through events or day-to -day support.
Advocate – Sign up for AMAC newsletter; urge legislators to restore refugee-program funding.
Donate to AMAC’s statewide fund to support during times of crisis.
Let’s remember: every time Tennessee opens a door, our shared story gains resilience, talent and heart. Together we can ensure that the next family who lands at BNA, CHA, TYS or MEM finds not just safety, but a place to belong.