Press Room ::Facts & Figures

The International Refugee Crisis:
International Leaders and Celebrities Speak Out

 

“The United States is committed to supporting refugees and displaced people worldwide… We stand with refugees because their struggle represents a humanitarian emergency…their fates have broad repercussions for…their countrymen, and all people everywhere.”

– Hillary Rodham Clinton
67th United States Secretary of State

“Having a home, a place we belong, a place we feel safe, is something most of us take for granted…Please remember the millions of people around the world who were forced from their homes. Because the only hope of return is to not be forgotten.”

– Angelina Jolie
UNHCR Goodwill Ambassador and American film star

“As a nation…one of our foreign policy priorities is to support the world’s most vulnerable citizens…when you reach out to help another in need, that you reap great benefits.”

– Eric Schwartz
Assistant Secretary of State, Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration

“I'm not an expert in international affairs or diplomacy, but it doesn't take that to see tremendous suffering here.”

– Ben Affleck
American film star

“Our nation is a leader among the asylum-providing countries, and our communities have embraced refugees and asylum seekers, welcoming them as Americans.”

– Patrick Leahy
U.S. Senator (D-VT)

“I urge you to celebrate the extraordinary courage and contributions of refugees past and present.”

– Kofi Annan
Seventh Secretary-General of the United Nations, 1997-2006

“Once a refugee, always a refugee.”

– Elie Wiesel
Author, Recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize Recipient, Presidential Medal of Freedom, Congressional Gold Medal

“So often the world sits idly by, watching ethnic conflicts flare up, as if these were mere entertainment rather than human beings whose lives are being destroyed. Shouldn't the existence of even one single refugee be a cause for alarm throughout the world?”

– Urkhan Alakbarov
Azerbaijani geneticist

“Protracted wars, civil or otherwise, victimize predominantly women and children... Whether in refugee camps, or in the streets and neighborhoods of Mogadishu, the grim images of women and children in profound state of anguish... But their stories are never the dominant narrative of the consequence of that long conflict.”

– Sadia Ali Aden
Human Rights Advocate and Freelance Writer

“I have always believed that each individual has an opportunity to make a difference, and I hope that I may have a chance to do just that. Ultimately, we all have to assume responsibility for making the world a better place. I am particularly committed to assisting young refugees gain the means to rebuild their lives.”

– Giorgio Armani
Italian fashion designer and business leader

“It's never easy leaving your homeland, having to adapt to a different culture and trying to make it, but with the help that UNHCR gives, it makes life a lot easier.”

– Luol Deng
Refugee, Small Forward for the Chicago Bulls

“I have spoken to so many people who went through so much to get to this point.”

– Matt Damon
American film star, on visiting Zimbabwean refugees in South Africa

“I am really taken by the resilience of the Somali refugees. I want to ensure that all those kids I met in the camp school continue to get clean water.”

– Jessica Biel
American film star

 

Facts & Figures