Marshallese Americans

Marshallese Americans are Americans of Marshallese descent or Marshallese people naturalized in the United States. According to the 2010 census, 22,434 people of Marshallese origin lived in the United States at that time, though that number has likely grown significantly over the last decade. The United States has the highest concentration of Marshallese people outside the Marshall Islands. Most of these Marshallese people live in Hawaii and Arkansas, with significant populations in California, Washington, and Ohio.

Marshallese American
Total population
22,434 (2010 Census)[1]
Regions with significant populations
Hawaii  · Washington County, Arkansas  · Benton County, Arkansas  · Spokane, Washington  · Orange County, California  · Mercer County, Ohio  · Enid, Oklahoma
Languages
Marshallese language  · American English language
Religion
Protestantism (Baptists)
Related ethnic groups
Other American groups of Micronesian origin (Chamorro, Palauans, Micronesians)

History

In 1986, the Marshall Islands and the United States established an agreement called the Compact of Free Association,[2] according to which the archipelago attained its full sovereignty. The treaty allows United States to provide defense, "social services and other benefits to the Marshall Islands" in exchange for military bases on the islands.

Under this treaty, Marshall Islanders can also travel and work in United States without having visas,[2][3][4] although they must be legal permanent residents and go through the same naturalization process equal to that of all other nationalities.[3][4] Because they have the legal right to travel and work in the U.S., few Marshallese immigrants seek or attain citizenship.[4]

Immigration from the Marshall Islands to the United States first began in the 1980s. Additionally, when numerous layoffs occurred in the Marshall Islands in 2000, there was a second wave of migration of Marshallese to the U.S.

Most of them emigrated to Hawaii and Arkansas when Tyson Foods, the largest poultry meat distributor in the world, employed numerous Marshallese people on the islands. Therefore many Marshallese employees were transferred and relocated to Springdale, Arkansas, to the corporate headquarters of Tyson Foods. John Moody, the first Marshallese settler in Arkansas, came there in the 1980s.[5]

Many Marshallese emigrate to the United States to give their children an education, while other Marshalleses seek better working conditions or a better health system than the one found in their country.[2]

Furthermore, since 1996 many Marshallese children have been adopted by American parents. Between 1996 and 1999, over 500 Marshallese children were adopted by American families. These adoptions are a result of social marginalization and economic poverty suffered by the population of the archipelago. [6]

Demography

Most Marshallese Americans reside in Hawaii and Arkansas. Some 4,300 to 6,000 Marshallese call Arkansas home. Most reside in Washington County (mainly in Springdale),[3] compared to 7,400 living in Hawaii.[7] Most of Marshalleses who live in the continental United States reside in Springdale, which houses a community of about 2,000 people according to the 2005 Census. However, other estimates indique that the number of Marshallese living in the city could reach the 6,500 people.[8] Most of them migrated to Springdale to secure permanent employment at Tyson Foods International.[4][9] Most them already had legal status as American citizens.

About 12,000 Marshallese live in Arkansas and in live surrounding states.[10] Other significant Marshallese populations include Spokane (Washington) and Costa Mesa (California). According to Karen Morrison, director of Spokane’s Odyssey World International, a nonprofit that provides services for immigrants, Spokane County is home of a community of 2,400 or 3,000 people of Marshallese origin. In 2006 Spokane-area schools had a lot of Marshallese students, so that "Spokane Public Schools has 370 students whose primary language is Marshallese"; these students form the second group, more numerous than the Russian-speaking students (530 people) and following the Spanish-speakers (360 people) in these schools (in reference to non-English languages).[11]

The houses of the Marshallese of the USA house several generations of the same family [7][11] and are sparsely furnished. In general terms, the population (which now has a western diet) has been adversely affected by diabetes, heart disease, tuberculosis, and obesity.[7]

Many Marshallese are Baptist. The Marshallese Bible study group at Cross Church, a Baptist congregation in Springdale, has grown quickly in recent years, although the service is done mostly in English, since the church lacks ministers who speak fluent Marshallese.[2]

Children born in the United States to Marshallese families have dual citizenship.[11]

Notable people

References
  1. The Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander Population: 2010 Census, 2010 Census Briefs, United States Bureau of the Census, May 2012
  2. Dan Craft (December 29, 2010). "Marshallese immigration". Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette. Retrieved 25 October 2013.
  3. Marshallese support industry in Northwest Arkansas Archived 2013-10-29 at the Wayback Machine.Consulted on 25 October 2013, to 12:50 am.
  4. Republic of the Marshall Island. Consulted on 25 October 2013, to 1:15 am.
  5. Schilte, Bret (2012-07-05). "For Pacific Islanders, Hopes and Troubles in Arkansas". The New York Times. Retrieved 2020-07-28.
  6. ADOPTION AND AGENCY: American Adoptions of Marshallese Children. Consulted on 25 October 2013, to 13:30 pm.
  7. Encyclopedia of Arkansas: Marshallese.
  8. A New Island: The Marshallese in Arkansas.
  9. "Micronesians Abroad", Micronesian Counselor, published by Micronesian Seminar, authored by Francis X. Hezel and Eugenia Samuel, number 64, December 2006, retrieved 8 July 2013.
  10. AllGov.Consulted on 25 October 2013, to 1:45 am.
  11. The Spokesman Review: Marshallese making a new life in Spokane. Posted on March 4, 2012. Consulted on 26 October 2013, to 13:15 pm.
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