POCATELLO (Idaho Capital Sun) — The Idaho Office for Refugees, alongside other community organizations such as the Agency for New Americans, will celebrate the annual World Refugee Day Saturday at Boise’s JUMP building – bringing together musical acts, vendors and artists from across the community.

Pocatello is set to host its World Refugee Day celebrations that same day, while Twin Falls will hold its iteration on Juneteenth.

Inaugurated 25 years ago, World Refugee Day helps bring attention to local refugee communities and their experiences resettling, Idaho Office for Refugees Communication Manager Holly Beech said in an interview with the Idaho Capital Sun.

Holly Beech is the communications manager at the Idaho Office for Refugees in Boise. (Photo courtesy of the Idaho Office for Refugees)

Idaho in particular ranked third among U.S. states with the highest density of refugee populations per 100,000 people in 2023, according to a report by the Immigration Research Initiative. Saturday’s event is aimed at showcasing how these communities have formed long-lasting relationships in the state, Beech said.

“(The event) is a great reminder of things to celebrate in our communities, the beautiful cultures and friendships that come through having a resettlement program,” she added. “It’s also a reminder that around the world there are still many people displaced, and fewer than 1% of them will get welcomed to a third country through refugee resettlement … so it’s honoring them.”

Holly Beech is the communications manager at the Idaho Office for Refugees in Boise. | the Idaho Office for Refugees

The history of World Refugee Day

The United Nations Commission on Human Rights founded World Refugee day in 2001, as it commemorated the 50th anniversary of a United Nations Convention related to the status of refugees.

The 1951 convention established the concept of “non-refoulement,” a principle of international law that says refugees should not be returned to their country of origin if they face “serious threats to their life or freedom,” according to the United Nations Commission on Human Rights.

Today, celebrations channel the resilience of those forced to flee by building networks of mutual support in the community, Beech said.

“This is a chance to help people find stronger networks to support themselves, and that’s not just people from refugee backgrounds,” Beech said. “This community is full of amazing resources that any Idahoan can benefit from, so it’s a good chance to connect everybody.”

Dancers perform a traditional Aztec dance during World Refugee Day on June 19, 2025. | A.J. Jeske, Idaho Office for Refugees

Refugees in Idaho

Idaho began its resettlement program in 1975, and it has since accepted more than 30,000 refugees, according to Beech.

Statistics from the Idaho Office for Refugees indicate that, among those resettled in the fiscal year 2025, people from the Democratic Republic of Congo, Afghanistan, Syria, Sudan and Venezuela made up the majority.

For Wahida Ivey, an Afghanistan-born refugee who re-settled in the U.S. 45 years ago after the 1979-1989 Soviet invasion of her country, community initiatives – such as World Refugee Day – give these multi-cultural groups a space to come together and share.

Dancers perform a traditional Aztec dance during World Refugee Day on June 19, 2025. (Photo by A.J. Jeske/Idaho Office for Refugees)

Ivey works as a professional interpreter and cultural adviser, and she said her experiences, especially following the 2021 U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan, taught her about the importance of trust in community.

“I work very hard to have that trust in the community,” she said. “To know that anytime there’s help that’s needed, there’s always somebody that can step up to the plate.”

By bridging the gap between refugees and community members, Beech said the event builds trust while giving people an opportunity to transcend the label “refugee.”

“I’m a human, I have interests, I play soccer, I own a business … no one wants to be seen just as a label for the rest of your life,” Beech said. “Part of that is coming together and laughing, eating, singing, it’s just friendships.”

“In an ideal world, refugee resettlement wouldn’t have to exist, but since it does exist, it is an honor to be able to make these relationships,” she added.

People may attend World Refugee Day events at the following times and locations:

Boise

Where: JUMP Boise, 1000 West Myrtle Street

When: 10 a.m.-2 p.m.

Twin Falls

Where: The Gas Lamp, 269 Third Avenue South

When: 6-9 p.m.

Pocatello

Where: 426 West Lewis Street

When: 6-8 p.m.

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