John Burnett, NPR Questions are being raised about what to call
people who have escaped New Orleans. Are they refugees?
Evacuees? Victims? It all depends on who you ask. Questions are
being raised about what to call people who have escaped New
Orleans. Are they refugees? Evacuees? Victims? It all depends on
who you ask. John Burnett, NPR Hurricane Katrina created
thousands of refugees who were forced into states throughout the
South, and beyond. But not so fast. Media outlets have been
deluged with complaints about the term "refugee." Civil rights
activist Al Sharpton said, "They are not refugees. They are
citizens of the United States." (NPR has adopted a policy of not
referring to them as refugees.) In some dictionaries the
definition of refugee is simply "one seeking refuge." But other
dictionaries include the qualifier that the word is usually
applied to a person crossing national boundaries because of
persecution. Even the etymology of the word contains examples of
applying only to trans-national evacuat