On World Refugee Day, one campaign staffer shares his journey
NEW HAMPSHIRE — Suraj Budathoki is a man of dates. March 5, 1990 is when he left Bhutan overnight at age nine as a political refugee with his family. February 24, 2009 is when he resettled in Atlanta, GA and began working two full-time jobs to support himself. December 5, 2009 is when he got to New Hampshire and soon after started taking classes at a community college, later earning a bachelor’s degree in political science and a masters’ degree in international relations.
And May 1, 2019 is when he started working for Sen. Bernie Sanders’ presidential campaign as his Constituency Director in New Hampshire.
Budathoki left Bhutan at a time when a sixth of the population was being evicted due to political persecution from an authoritarian government. But he says that when he finally got to America, he was unaware of how hard it would be to feel like he was succeeding.
Thursday was World Refugee Day, marked by the U.N. and Budathoki told NBC News that arriving in the U.S. was a shock. “When I came to the United States, I was unaware of the reality of America, the hardship, the recession,” he said. “I was unaware of all those things. And I was kind of traumatized.”
Budathoki says Sanders’ plans to address education and student debt, healthcare, income inequality and climate inspired him to get involved with the campaign.
"Suraj represents the promise of America and what this country can be,” Joe Caiazzo, Bernie Sanders’ New Hampshire State Director, told NBC News. “He overcame enormous hardships and built a life for him and his family in New Hampshire. Suraj became an entrepreneur, a leader in his community, and a role model not just for new Americans, but for all of us. We're lucky to have him on our team as we build our grassroots campaign throughout New Hampshire."
Budathoki said while he and other refugees see America as a beacon of hope, the country isn’t addressing the underlying causes of refugee displacement — supporting authoritarian regimes, implementing imbalanced trade policies and tackling climate change. “We have a responsibility to answer these issues,” he said.
Budathoki says working on the Sanders campaign has been his “proudest moment.” To future refugees who want to get involved in the political process, Budathoki said, “Fight for your right. Speak up. No one has the right to dehumanize you.”