United States Foreign And Immigration Policies Toward Lebanon: 1975-2011
Author: Clairissa RadykoLebanese Emigration Research Center
SYNOPSIS:
The author analyzes American migration policy toward Lebanon as it changed in tandem with the events that have unfolded in Lebanon since 1975 in order to understand what impact each factor played in shaping actual Lebanese migration to the United States. Certain events endogenous to Lebanon have served as push factors in the course of Lebanese migration to the United States, but American immigration policy has played, as well, a prominent role in determining the levels of actual migration. The result of these mutual determinants on the emigration process is not straightforward. There are periods when the intensity of war related violence spiked that were also periods of relatively low levels of migration to the United States, for example during the civil war period and the war with Israel. On the other hand, periods when diplomatic stress was low saw both high and low levels of per year immigration. Prima facie, there seems to be no clear explanation for these differences in immigration. Possibly, drastic changes in the numbers of those applying for admission across all categories had to do with other internal Lebanese factors, or factors having to do with the perception of American migration policy. Possibly, American policy goals shifted during the period under study because it was being used as a soft political tool in the service of overall American foreign policy.
We can map three distinct U.S. foreign policy focuses that emerge in American migration policy toward Lebanon since 1975. The first focus was defined by the cold war mentality of power politics, with the U.S. attempting to maintain power in the region through military and strategic avenues, and granting lawful permanent resident status and asylum status relative to these larger strategies during intervals of political strain. The second policy focus was defined by humanitarian relief, which prioritized the issues of asylum and granting temporary protected status. Periods where humanitarian avenues of migration have been relatively open to Lebanese migrants correlate to periods of diplomatic stress between Lebanon and the United States. The third and most recent focus is defined by terrorism and security. These issues were brought to the front by the events of 9/11, coupled with Hezbollah’s expanding role in Lebanon and the 2006 war with Israel. The foreign policy of the United States changed to one that balanced the struggle against terrorism with the promotion of democracy within the Middle East, which has visibly marked the implementation of American immigration policy vis a vis migrants from the region
