Refugee Awareness 101: History, Lived Experiences and Humanitarian Response
Lesson 1: What Does It Mean To Be A Refugee?

What Does It Mean To Be A Refugee?

Complete & Continue Next Lesson Learn More

In this lesson, you will:

  1. Define the terms refugee, internally displaced person, and migrant

  2. Understand why the United Nations created an official definition of the term refugee

  3. Identify the challenges refugees face as they flee their homes, settle temporarily in other countries, and seek to find a permanent home

  4. Reflect on your own connections to the refugee experience

Directions:

  1. Watch the video on the right. As you watch, answer the questions that pop up throughout.

  2. The end of the video invites you to reflect on your own connections to the refugee experience. If you wish to reflect further, please use the course reflection journal linked below.

  3. If you’d like to explore stories of individual refugee experiences, please refer to the additional resources. If you click on the description of each resource, you will be taken directly to that resource.

  • 1. TED Talk: A Boat Carrying 500 Refugees Sank at Sea. The Story fo Two Survivors. In this TED talk, the UN’s Melissa Flemming tells the story of Doaa, a Syrian woman who nearly lost her life when a boat smuggling refugees sank. Flemming asks the questions why refugees have to take such risks to reach safety.

    2. TED Talk: What It's Like to Be A War Refugee Living under the constant threat of violence has a lasting effect -- even after you escape from danger, says writer and refugee advocate Zarlasht Halaimzai. One of the millions of people worldwide who have been forcibly displaced by conflict, Halaimzai now helps others overcome the devastation of war. In this poignant, vital talk, she articulates the lingering trauma of being expendable -- and shares how belonging to a community can help bring back feelings of long-lost safety.

    3. TED Talk: Refugees: A Human Perspective. In a world where, in every two seconds, a person is forced to migrate as a consequence of conflicts, it’s important to have empathy, compassion and respect towards others. Once a refugee himself, Naky shares his unique perspective on how it is to be in the place of someone that is forced to migrate, leaving behind their life without any certainty about the future.

    4. Their Story Is Our Story. This project collects and shares the stories of refugees from all over the world to encourage understanding and empathy, to advance public policy supporting refugees, and to help individuals and communities welcome people forcibly displaced from their homes. You can read these blog-style stories on their website.