title: Vietnamese refugees and blocked mobility.
abstract: "This paper examines data from published sources and ethnographic studies conducted by the authors in Oakland, California and Philadelphia [Pennsylvania] to assess the economic situation of Vietnamese refugees in the United States.  Evidence suggests that in strong contrast to being a 'success story,' the economic status of many recently arrived Vietnamese refugees is characterized by unstable, minimum-wage employment, welfare dependency and participation in the informal economy.  The paper suggests that the group's economic opportunities have been limited by the configuration of circumstances that have surrounded their entry and settlement into the United States as refugees, as well as by the demographic structure of the group."
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Gold
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Kibria
mesh_terms: D000569:Americas; D003469:Culture; D003710:Demography; D019049:Developed Countries; D004467:Economics; D004641:Emigration and Immigration; D004651:Employment; D005006:Ethnicity; D009656:North America; D011153:Population; D011154:Population Characteristics; D011157:Population Dynamics; D012036:Refugees; D012923:Social Class; D012946:Social Welfare; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D014171:Transients and Migrants; D014481:United States
keywords: Americas; Asians; Cultural Background; Demographic Factors; Developed Countries; Economic Factors; Employment Status; Ethnic Groups; Informal Sector; Macroeconomic Factors; Migrants; Migration; North America; Northern America; Population; Population Characteristics; Population Dynamics; Refugees; Settlement And Resettlement; Social Welfare; Socioeconomic Factors; Socioeconomic Status; United States