"A place to call home": A process of liberation for Rohingya Refugees in the United States.

Abstract

This study explores the experiences of Rohingya refugees in the United States following their forced migration and years as stateless refugees. Qualitative strengths-based phenomenological analysis was applied to individual interviews with eight key informants, all identified as Rohingya refugees. Interviews focused on experience and meaning-making concerning the complexities of Rohingya identity and belonging, rights and liberation in the United States, and the impact of generational, gender, and migration patterns. Five superordinate themes were initially identified. The first theme focused on the adaptive and resilient responses to institutionalized discrimination, emphasizing changes in Rohingya identity and values. The second theme examined how these adaptive responses influenced participants' perceptions of American culture and society. The final three themes underscored participants' reflections on their sense of agency, efforts to preserve Rohingya culture, and their journey to find belonging. These themes were further analyzed and discussed through a liberation framework. The findings demonstrate how Rohingya diaspora communities are impacted by their pre-, intermediary, and post-migration experiences as they create cultural roots and establish permanency, actively claim their agency, and promote liberation.