The History of Ethiopian Immigrants and Refugees in America, 1900-2000 (The New Americans: Recent Immigration and American Society)

343 Pages·2006·1.58 MB·English

by  Solomon Addis Getahun

The New Americans
Recent Immigration and American Society

Edited by
Steven J. Gold and Rubén G. Rumbaut

A Series from LFB Scholarly
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The History of Ethiopian
Immigrants and Refugees in
America, 1900-2000
Patterns of Migration, Survival, and
Adjustment

Solomon Addis Getahun

LFB Scholarly Publishing LLC
New York 2007
Copyright © 2007 by LFB Scholarly Publishing LLC

All rights reserved.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Getahun, Solomon Addis.
The history of Ethiopian immigrants and refugees in America, 1900-
2000 : patterns of migration, survival, and adjustment / Solomon Addis
Getahun.
p. cm. -- (New Americans recent immigration and American
society)
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 1-59332-151-1 (alk. paper)
1. Ethiopia--Emigration and immigration. 2. United States--
Emigration and immigration. 3. Ethiopians--United States--History. I.
Title.
JV8997.G48 2007
304.8'730630904--dc22

2006029529

ISBN-10 1593321511
ISBN-13 9781593321512

Printed on acid-free 250-year-life paper.

Manufactured in the United States of America.
TABLE OF CONTENTS

LIST OF TABLES ........................................................................… vii

ABBREVIATIONS ..............................................................................ix

ACKNOWLEDGMENT …………………………………………..…xi

INTRODUCTION…………………………………………………..…1

CHAPTER I: ETHIOPIAN-AMERICAN RELATION AND EARLY
MIGRATION OF ETHIOPIANS TO AMERICA, 1903-1974
…………………….…………………………………………………..11

CHAPTER II: REVOLUTION IN ETHIOPIA: THE COMING OF
REFUGEES TO AMERICA (1970s-1990s) ……..…………...….......47

CHAPTER III: ETHNIC, REGIONAL, CLASS DIFFERENCE AND
GENERATION GAP AMONG ETHIOPIANS IN AMERICA ……
……………………………………………………………………….111

CHAPTER IV: PROCESS OF ADJUSTMENT: THE
ESTABLISHMENT OF COMMUNITY ORGANIZATIONS.. . .
……………………………………………………………………… 175

CHAPTER V: THE IMPACT OF ETHIOPIAN-AMERICANS ON
ETHIOPIA ……………………………………….…………………235

CHAPTER VI: DIASORA POLITICS, ITS LEGACY AND THE
SCOND GENERATION………………………… …….…………. 269

SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY …...………….…………………….287

INDEX…........................................................................................... 321

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LIST OF TABLES

Table 1: Ethiopian Military Personnel Trained in U.S., 1950 1970s
…….......................................................................................................32

Table 2: Ethiopians Educated in the U.S., 1950s-1970s
…….......................................................................................................3

Table 3: Number of Ethiopian & African Refugees Resettled in the
USA (1980-2000) …………...………………………………………104

Table 4: Number of Ethiopians who were Granted Asylum/Refugee
Status in America between 1940 and 1990s …..................................137

Table 5: Number of Naturalized Ethiopians in America …...............187

Table 6: Private Transfer/Remittance Earning (In Millions of Birr)
………………………………………………………………….….. .239

Table 7: Remittance vis-à-vis Export Earning (In Millions of U.S.
Dollars) …………………………………………………...................242

Table 8: Ethiopian Born Investors by Country of Citizenship, 1991-
2003.....................................................................................................245

Table 9: Number of Ethiopians from the Diaspora who Took Land from
Gondar Municipality, between 1995 and 2003 .................................248

Table 10: Major Tourist Generating Countries for Ethiopia and the
Share of the Ethiopian Diaspora, 1998-2000 …………………….....249

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ABBREVIATIONS

AESM: All-Ethiopia Socialist Movement
ANC: African National Congress
COR: Sudanese Commission of Refugees
ECDC: Ethiopian Community Development Council
EDU: Ethiopian Democratic Union
EDORM: Ethiopian Democratic Officers’ Revolutionary Movement
ELF: Eritrean Liberation Front
EOC: Ethiopian Orthodox Church
EPLF: Eritrean People’s Liberation Front
EPRA: Ethiopian People’s Revolutionary Army
EPRDF: Ethiopian People’s Revolutionary Democratic Front
EPRP: Ethiopian Peoples Revolutionary Party
ERA: Eritrean Relief Association
ESFNA: Ethiopian Sport Federation in North America
ESUNA: Ethiopian Students Union in North America
ETV: Ethiopian National Television
EVD: Extended Voluntary Departure
GDP: Gross Domestic Product
ICM: International Committee for Migration
ICMC: International Catholic Migration Committee
IES: Institute of Ethiopia Studies.
INS: Immigration and Naturalization Services
IRCA: Immigration Reform and Control Act
IRC: International Rescue Committee
MAG: Military Advisory Groop
NAACP: National Association for the Advancement of Colored People
NCO: Non Commissioned Officer
OAU: Organization of African Union
OLF: Oromo Liberation Front
ORA: Oromo Relief Association
PMAC: Provisional Military Administrative Council
PMGE: Provisional Military Government of Ethiopia
RCS: Refugee Counseling Services
RCVTE: Rehabilitation Center for the Victims of Torture

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