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Where refugees in Montana are arriving from

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September 9, 2024
Robsonphoto // Shutterstock

Where refugees in Montana are arriving from

During the past five decades, the U.S. has resettled over 3 million refugees, making it one of the leading countries for finding new homes for people fleeing violence, persecution, and war.

In 2021, then-President Donald Trump lowered the annual cap of refugees that could be admitted into the country to 15,000. Even as the Biden administration has raised the ceiling to 125,000, the annual number of refugees arriving in the U.S. didn't immediately bounce back to pre-Trump administration levels. The numbers are increasing though, with over 25,000 refugees arriving in the U.S. in the 2022 fiscal year, twice the 2021 total.

Refugee arrivals during the 2023 fiscal year dramatically outpaced the prior two years, reaching over 60,000 from October 2022 to September 2023.

In August 2024, the greatest number of refugees admitted by the U.S. came from Venezeula, Afghanistan, and Congo. Each nation faces a unique set of circumstances that can make their citizens unsafe if they stay in their home country.

In Venezuela, over 7.5 million people have left the country due to extreme inflation, violence, food and medicine scarcity, and other factors. Most have resettled in Latin American and Caribbean countries. Afghan refugees have been fleeing to neighboring countries for decades, especially to Pakistan and Iran, which combined host over 8 million Afghans. For the last three decades, Congo, also called the Democratic Republic of Congo, has been struggling with a series of civil wars and internal battles that have left millions of people displaced, both internally and externally, with many people fleeing to neighboring countries.

Stacker referenced data from the Refugee Processing Center to compile statistics on the number of refugees and their countries of origin resettled in Montana in August 2024. Countries with only one refugee since October 2023 are not included.

August refugee statistics
Countries where refugees arrived from in August
To Montana:
#1. Venezuela: 13
#2. Congo: 10
#3. Afghanistan: 4

To the U.S. as a whole:
#1. Venezuela: 2,310
#2. Congo: 1,503
#3. Afghanistan: 1,460
#4. Syria: 695
#5. Guatemala: 655

States that accepted the most refugees in August:
#1. Texas: 1,213
#2. California: 808
#3. Florida: 527
#4. New York: 514
#5. Washington: 507

Read on to see the countries that Montana has accepted the most refugees from since the start of the fiscal year in October 2023.

People buying spices at a street market in Damascus
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hanohiki // Shutterstock

#1. Syria

Refugees that arrived from Syria since October 2023
To Montana: 39

To the U.S. as a whole: 9,689
Top states receiving refugees from Syria
#1. New York: 972
#2. Michigan: 964
#3. Pennsylvania: 808
#4. Texas: 581
#5. California: 552

Afghan women in burkas pass by a man outside a market
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Canva

#2. Afghanistan

Refugees that arrived from Afghanistan since October 2023
To Montana: 30

To the U.S. as a whole: 12,634
Top states receiving refugees from Afghanistan
#1. California: 2,611
#2. Texas: 1,299
#3. Virginia: 1,042
#4. Washington: 777
#5. New York: 582

An aerial view of caracas, Venezuela.
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#3. Venezuela

Refugees that arrived from Venezuela since October 2023
To Montana: 28

To the U.S. as a whole: 9,225
Top states receiving refugees from Venezuela
#1. Texas: 1,488
#2. Florida: 1,425
#3. Illinois: 522
#4. New York: 379
#5. Georgia: 362

Woman carries basket through street in Bukavu
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Katja Tsvetkova // Shutterstock

#4. Congo

Refugees that arrived from Congo since October 2023
To Montana: 22

To the U.S. as a whole: 17,626
Top states receiving refugees from Congo
#1. Texas: 1,574
#2. Kentucky: 1,505
#3. Ohio: 1,217
#4. Arizona: 1,196
#5. New York: 1,112

Wide view of traditional, older buildings on a hillside in Yemen.
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#5. Yemen

Refugees that arrived from Yemen since October 2023
To Montana: 12

To the U.S. as a whole: 124
Top states receiving refugees from Yemen
#1. Michigan: 27
#2. New York: 14
#3. Georgia: 13
#4. Montana: 12
#5. Texas: 11

This story features data reporting and writing by Emma Rubin and is part of a series utilizing data automation across 48 states.

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