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Transcultural Psychiatry
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Impact of September 11 on Refugees and Those Seeking Asylum

Linda A. Piwowarczyk

Boston University, piwo{at}bu.edu

Terence M. Keane

Boston University

September 11, 2001 profoundly affected the American public. We share the views of a cohort of refugees and those seeking asylum from the Boston Center for Refugee Health and Human Rights. Of the 63 individuals from 18 countries interviewed, many had concerns about their personal safety following September 11, as well as fears related to deportation, arrest, detention, imprisonment, discrimination, physical violence and the destruction of property, and war. Asylum seekers were more likely than refugees to have concerns about their safety before their departure and during flight, as well as fear deportation and arrest after September 11. In the wake of September 11, most common coping strategies utilized included prayer (77.8%), speaking with friends from their own social group (47.6%), family (44.4%), and belief in fate (42.9%).

Key Words: asylum seekers • post-traumatic stress disorder • refugees • September 11 • terrorism

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Transcultural Psychiatry, Vol. 44, No. 4, 566-580 (2007)
DOI: 10.1177/1363461507083897
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This Article
Right arrow Abstract Freely available
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Right arrow Articles by Piwowarczyk, L. A.
Right arrow Articles by Keane, T. M.
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PubMed
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Right arrow Articles by Piwowarczyk, L. A.
Right arrow Articles by Keane, T. M.
Social Bookmarking
Add to CiteULike   Add to Complore   Add to Connotea   Add to Del.icio.us   Add to Digg   Add to Reddit   Add to Technorati   Add to Twitter  
What's this?