Agency members of the Austin Refugee Roundtable have planned an annual World Refugee Day celebration since 2005. That first celebration was an informal picnic at Walnut Creek Park. The celebration moved the next year to Guero’s restaurant, then to the Episcopal Seminary in 2007.
The 2008 celebration was at St. David’s Episcopal Church. That year was the first time that the US Citizenship and Immigration Office (USCIS) collaborated with the Refugee Roundtable in hosting a citizenship ceremony for refugees who were eligible to become citizens.
The following year, World Refugee Day moved to the Bullock Texas History Museum and it had been there ever since. Every year, a number of refugees who had completed the process took the oath of allegiance to the United States. With the advent of the Corona Virus, this year’s World Refugee Day celebration is virtual and this is the first time in recent history we are not able to celebrate having a number of refugees become US citizens. USCIS has also put most of citizenship swearing in ceremonies on hold during this pandemic.