Refugee-Centered Advocacy and Engagement

Biar Atem is a former refugee from South Sudan and the founder of the South Sudan Center of America, a nonprofit that assists refugees. In 2014, he was named Fortune Magazine’s ‘Heroes of the 500’ for helping others suffering from persecution and poverty. These achievements would not have been possible without the U.S. resettlement program which gave him an opportunity to find a new home in the U.S. 

In 1987, Biar’s home village was attacked and he was forced to flee South Sudan. His journey as a refugee over the next 13 years took him from a refugee camp in Ethiopia to the Kakuma refugee camp in Kenya. It wasn’t until he was relocated to Las Vegas through the U.S. resettlement program that he was finally safe to pursue his dreams. Biar is now the Nevada delegate for Refugee Congress and a board member for USA for UNHCR, using his experiences to empower refugees. 

USA for UNHCR is committed to advocating for increased annual U.S. refugee admissions and renewing the United States’ commitment to refugees.