Western Connecticut State University

“I came to the United States as an immigrant to work with a refugee and immigrant organization in Atlanta, Georgia, and so I saw how policies played out on the ground when refugees were resettled, what stories were being told,” Ludwig said. “I worked for two different organizations for six years. And I always say, I am an example of the idealized immigrant story. I came as an intern to work for one organization, and eventually became the executive director. Then I co-founded a nonprofit organization. I did that for a couple years and then I decided to get a Ph.D. in Sociology. And I always knew I wanted to write about African refugees because there is not a lot of literature. Much of the research is about Mexican immigrants. Other immigrants and refugees, especially those from Africa, tend to get overlooked. Also, we don’t talk about the African conflicts. When you read about the news, it is about Ukraine and Iran. But 12 million Sudanese people are displaced, and the war has been raging in the Congo for decades. And Somalia, we also don’t talk about this.”