Anthropologist helps refugees

By Stacey DeFever, On-Line Forty-Niner

Monday, November 30, 1998

Do not go into non-profit work if you want to make money - though it can be exhilarating, rewarding and adventurous, said Laura Leonelli, program coordinator for Sacramento Lao Family Community.

Leonelli spoke Tuesday to group of about 30 Cal State Long Beach students in PSY-150 about her career as an applied anthropologist.

"When I was in college, I never could've imagined what my career would be," Leonelli said.

The agency Leonelli works for assists mostly Southeast Asian refugees who have come to the Sacramento area because they already had family or friends living in the area, she said.

The job has required her to acquire numerous skills, including accounting, writing grant proposals, using the Internet, assisting with employment and working with people who do not speak English, Leonelli said.

The agency helps the refugees gain employment, citizenship, language skills in both English and the native language, and solve cultural conflicts, she said, all skills that ease the transition to life in American.

When problems arise between families, the agency attempts to resolve the situations before they get to the police.

One situation that came to the attention of the agency, Leonelli said, was that of a married 14-year-old girl and her parents.

The parents were not happy with the marital arrangement so they called the police, claiming that the man had kidnapped and raped their daughter, she said.

Also keeping the agency busy, Leonelli said, are disagreements about money and arguments between husbands and wives, which she and her co-workers believe are better resolved within the community.

The agency also helps create support groups and develop leaders in the communities, Leonelli said.

Anyone interested in this type of career should do plenty of volunteer work and acquire as many different skills as possible, she said.

"In college, I read everything I possibly could about refugees, but I feel that I didn't even begin learning until I was dealing with them on a day to day basis," Leonelli said.

Although one's salary is never steady because it is based on what the agency can afford to pay at the time, non-profit employees will never starve, Leonelli said.

"The families are always bringing me food and inviting me to their parties," Leonelli said.