REFUGEE
SAN DIEGO
Maya Lê Espiritu
Ocean Refuge
Gouache on canvas
COMMUNITY HIGHLIGHTS
This space amplifies the work, stories, and visions emerging from San Diego’s refugee communities. It brings together community-led events, creative submissions, and ongoing projects that reflect the richness and complexity of refugee life in the region. Community members are invited to contribute to any of these pages to share their perspectives and experiences.
CULTURAL HERITAGE CHAMPION
On October 15, 2024, Refugee San Diego was recognized by the County of San Diego Archives for our contribution to cultural heritage and historic preservation in San Diego!
WHO IS A REFUGEE?
Following the Critical Refugee Studies Collective, we define refugees as human beings forcibly displaced within or outside of their land of origin as a result of persecution, conflict, war, conquest, settler/colonialism, militarism, occupation, empire, and environmental and climate-related disasters, regardless of their legal status. Refugees can be self-identified and are often unrecognized within the limited definitions proffered by international and state laws, hence may be subsumed, in those instances, under other labels such as "undocumented".
OUR GOALS
San Diego has the distinction of being home to one of the largest concentrations of refugees in the United States. Learn when, how, and why refugees from all over the world have resettled in San Diego and how they have adjusted to their local schools, jobs, and living environments. Refugee San Diego is committed to showcasing the rich and multifaceted lives of refugees in the region.
LAND ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
The county of San Diego is built on the unceded territory of the Kumeyaay Nation. Today, the Kumeyaay people continue to maintain their political sovereignty and cultural traditions as vital members of the San Diego community.
Following Evyn Lê Espiritu Gandhi, we acknowledge that refugees in San Diego are “refugee settlers” whose resettlement is predicated on the forced displacement and dispossession of Indigenous communities. We envision and work toward forms of decolonial solidarity that encompass justice and belonging for both Indigenous subjects and displaced refugees.