Stories of Immigration to the US

Come hear the “Suitcase Stories” about personal experiences of migrating to the United States and learn how the International Institute of New England has been assisting immigrants and refugees for over a century. This is a unique opportunity to hear personal experiences about coming to the United States, settling, finding a home, job and school and working your way through the endless requirements to citizenship.

IINE supports refugees and immigrants coming to this area through resettlement, education and career advancement programs. The Institute offers humanitarian relief, English language learning, employment, skills training, and immigration legal services to thousands of people from 60+ different countries. IINE has three locations: Boston, Massachusetts; Lowell, Massachusetts; and Manchester, New Hampshire.

Founded in 1924, IINE initially served people coming from Europe. In the 1970s, the rise of the Khmer Rouge and the fall of Saigon brought thousands of people from Cambodia and Vietnam to Lowell and Boston. In the 1990s, Bosnian refugees, Kurds fleeing Iraq, and Kosovars fleeing Serbian aggression came to the area. In the 21st century, refugees and immigrants from Iraq, Bhutan, Somalia, the Democratic Republic of Congo and other countries in Africa, South and Southeast Asia, the nations of South and Central America. More recently they are assisting people from Afghanistan, Ukraine, and Haiti who have resettled in New England.