Resettling Hope

Resettling Hope is a documentary film and photography project exploring the challenges and experiences of Afghan war refugees in the United States. This multimedia project focuses on five Afghan families resettled under the Special Immigration Visas (SIV) program in Alexandria, Va., and Hyattsville, Md. These families left Afghanistan because their work with U.S. contractors, the U.S. Government, or the U.S.-trained Afghan Army put them at great risk. Upon arriving in America, the families receive minimal benefits for their first 30 days. After that they are on their own to tackle the difficulties of a new and complex culture and system. These families confront unexpected hardships including unemployment, language barriers, the high cost of living, depression and loss of community and cultural identity. The primary voices in “Resettling Hope” are the Afghan men, women and children of these resettled families and an Afghan expert on the mental health effects of forced emigration.

Author

• Rezaie, Mahnaz

Language

• en

Keyword

• Refugees
• Documentary
• Special Immigration (SIV)
• Afghans
• Immigrants
• US department of State

Date created

• 2016

Type of Work

• Master's Thesis

License

• All rights reserved

Rights statement

• In Copyright

GW Unit

• New Media Photojournalism

Degree

• M.A.

Advisor

• Bulisova, Gabriela
• Sterner, Susan

Committee Member(s)

• Grundberg, Andy

Persistent URL

•  https://scholarspace.library.gwu.edu/etd/zc77sq206