Integrating New York City's Migrant Refugees into Society amid National and Local Policy Challenges: An Asset Accumulation & Livelihood Capitals Perspective

This decade, foreign refugees fleeing violence and destitution comprise an increasing share of urban homeless populations in the United States. A record 2.48 million migrants entered the U.S. from Mexico in 2023. U.S. officials have failed to address the issue. Federal policies that barred migrants from applying for asylum at the U.S. border in 2018 preceded border crossing influxes in 2019, which have continued unabated (excluding 2020). In 2022, officials from southern states began “busing” migrants to northeastern cities like New York, which contributed to the 53% increase in that city’s shelter population between July ’22 (54,738) and October ‘23 (83,985).

How do organizations serving the homeless integrate this vulnerable population into mainstream society?

HELP USA serves over 600 migrants in NYC shelters. This talk details how staff responses to migrant needs have ensured better educational, employment, social service and housing outcomes for them.

A survey of 62 asylum seeking households conducted by HELP Research in August 2024 found that the asylum and temporary protected status (TPS) application services, facilitated by front-line staff, established the “housing readiness” of these clients. Over three-fourths of respondents (77%) had achieved work authorizations or asylum and were therefore eligible for housing subsidies and local residence.

This study applied an “asset accumulation” framework to understand how these clients muster or “accumulate” “assets”, or "capitals", to overcome the vulnerabilities of their rapidly changed social, political and economic environments. The talk focuses on two interrelated findings. Social workers had provided a range of services that bolstered the capital base of the majority of surveyed clients. Migrants also had a substantial inherent capital base, such as university educations (human capital) and job networks (social capital), that they used to overcome barriers and secure jobs (financial capital).