Burundian refugees being taken to a refugee camp.

Refugees after the catastrophes of a Congolese civil war in 1998. It is always painful to lose everything and to become a refugee.

They are a tiny minority in Iowa. Roughly 20,000. They rarely speak English because they have not forgotten where they came from. From different countries of Africa, mostly right in the middle of civil wars, African refugees come to Iowa and love it. Now they say Iowa is their permanent home.

Living in major cities like Des Moines, Cedar Rapids, Waterloo, and Davenport, African refugees learn every day to integrate in the American culture.

It does not matter whether they are men or women, they always search for jobs in order to make a decent living, to pay taxes, and to contribute to the American economy like most Americans.

They are very grateful to America for giving them the chance to pursue the American dream and to enjoy a freedom that they have never dreamt of when they were persecuted in their countries.

These are refugees of different nationalities. They are united in Iowa through their common African heritage.

Rwandan refugees fleeing a civil war. After their resettlement in Iowa, refugees hardly forget such a past.

According to the Iowa Refugees' Bureau, Iowa resettles most of refugees from African refugees camps after they have fled from persecutions from their government. When they run away from their oppresors, they usually forsake anything they had. To become a refugee most of the times equals to be ripped of your material belongings, social status, self-esteem, familial ties, and social connections.

As they come to Iowa, most of African refugees are required to start all over their lives. In this website crafted by ALPHONSE MUHARE, an African journalism student at the University of Iowa, you will meet these refugees telling their stories. What they lost while in Africa is common in their stroytelling. However, their stories are not dull as such. They are built around sincere hope and certainty of "never again will we be persecuted."

A Congolese refugee, Komi (28) is now a Nurse Assistant. Iowa has given numerous opportunities to refugees so that they can become economically independent.

They tell their stories in a way their stories reflect a past that has refused to die away because it is a part of their lives.

They have come to Iowa with that past. They integrate in Iowa with their past. So they speak English with an African accent; they try hard to adapt to American laws and customs; they are surprised when their children bring new lifestyles. In conclusion, they come here as refugees, but they live like African Iowans.