Marshallese Americans are

Americans Americans are the citizens and nationals of the United States of America.; ; Although direct citizens and nationals make up the majority of Americans, many dual citizens, expatriates, and permanent residents could also legally claim Ame ...

of Marshallese descent or Marshallese people naturalized in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

. According to the 2010 census, 22,434 people of Marshallese origin lived in the United States at that time, though that number has likely grown significantly over the last decade. A recent estimate puts the number at approximately 30,000 in 2018. The United States has the highest concentration of Marshallese people outside the Marshall Islands. Most of these Marshallese people live in

Hawaii Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii or ) is a state in the Western United States, located in the Pacific Ocean about from the U.S. mainland. It is the only U.S. state outside North America, the only state that is an archipelago, and the only state ...

and

Arkansas Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the South Central United States. It is bordered by Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, and Texas and Oklahoma to the west. Its name is from the O ...

, with significant populations in

Washington Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered o ...

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

, Oklahoma and

Oregon Oregon () is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington, while the Snake River delineates much of its eastern boundary with Idaho. T ...

.Van der Geest, K., Burkett, M., Fitzpatrick, J., Stege M. & Wheeler, B. (2019)
Marshallese perspectives on migration in the context of climate change.
IOM Policy Brief 5 (1): 1-12.

History

In 1986, the Marshall Islands and the United States established an agreement called the

Compact of Free Association The Compact of Free Association (COFA) is an international agreement establishing and governing the relationships of free association between the United States and the three Pacific Island sovereign states of the Federated States of Micronesia (F ...

, according to which the archipelago attained its full sovereignty. The treaty allows United States to provide defense, "social services and other benefits to the Marshall Islands" in exchange for military bases on the islands. Under this treaty, Marshall Islanders can also travel and work in United States without having visas,Marshallese support industry in Northwest Arkansas
.Consulted on 25 October 2013, to 12:50 am.
Consulted on 25 October 2013, to 1:15 am. although they must be legal permanent residents and go through the same naturalization process equal to that of all other nationalities. Because they have the legal right to travel and work in the U.S., few Marshallese immigrants seek or attain citizenship. Immigration from the Marshall Islands to the United States first began in the 1980s. Additionally, when numerous layoffs occurred in the Marshall Islands in 2000, there was a second wave of migration of Marshallese to the U.S. Most of them emigrated to

and

when

Tyson Foods Tyson Foods, Inc. is an American multinational corporation, based in Springdale, Arkansas, that operates in the food industry. The company is the world's second-largest processor and marketer of chicken, beef, and pork after JBS S.A. It annually ...

, the largest poultry meat distributor in the world, employed numerous Marshallese people on the islands. Therefore many Marshallese employees were transferred and relocated to

Springdale, Arkansas Springdale is the fourth-largest city in Arkansas, United States. It is located in both Washington and Benton counties in Northwest Arkansas. Located on the Springfield Plateau deep in the Ozark Mountains, Springdale has long been an important i ...

, to the corporate headquarters of Tyson Foods. John Moody, the first Marshallese settler in Arkansas, came there in the 1980s. Many Marshallese emigrate to the United States to give their children an education, while other Marshalleses seek better working conditions or a better health system than the one found in their country. Furthermore, since 1996 many Marshallese children have been adopted by American parents. Between 1996 and 1999, over 500 Marshallese children were adopted by American families. These adoptions are a result of social marginalization and economic poverty suffered by the population of the archipelago. ADOPTION AND AGENCY: American Adoptions of Marshallese Children
Consulted on 25 October 2013, to 13:30 pm. Adoptions were further driven by unethical trafficking schemes for which some perpetrators are facing prosecution. Attorney in Marshallese adoption scheme to head to prison
Consulted on 30 April 2021, to 10:52 am.

Demography

Most Marshallese Americans reside in Hawaii and Arkansas. In 2020 it is estimated that some 15,000 Marshallese call Arkansas home. Most reside in Washington County, mainly in Springdale, home of

where many of them work. There are 7,400 living in Hawaii.Encyclopedia of Arkansas: Marshallese
Other significant Marshallese populations include Spokane (Washington) and Costa Mesa (California). According to Karen Morrison, director of Spokane’s Odyssey World International, a nonprofit that provides services for immigrants,

Spokane County Spokane County is a county located in the U.S. state of Washington. As of the 2020 census, its population was 539,339, making it the fourth-most populous county in Washington. The largest city and county seat is Spokane, the second largest cit ...

is home of a community of 2,400 or 3,000 people of Marshallese origin. In 2006 Spokane-area schools had a lot of Marshallese students, so that "Spokane Public Schools has 370 students whose primary language is Marshallese"; these students form the second group, more numerous than the Spanish-speaking students (360 people) and following the Russian-speaking students (530 people) in these schools (in reference to non-English languages).The Spokesman Review: Marshallese making a new life in Spokane
Posted on March 4, 2012. Consulted on 26 October 2013, to 13:15 pm. The houses of the Marshallese of the USA house several generations of the same family and are sparsely furnished. In general terms, the population (which now has a western diet) has been adversely affected by

diabetes Diabetes, also known as diabetes mellitus, is a group of metabolic disorders characterized by a high blood sugar level ( hyperglycemia) over a prolonged period of time. Symptoms often include frequent urination, increased thirst and increased ...

, heart disease,

tuberculosis Tuberculosis (TB) is an infectious disease usually caused by '' Mycobacterium tuberculosis'' (MTB) bacteria. Tuberculosis generally affects the lungs, but it can also affect other parts of the body. Most infections show no symptoms, i ...

obesity Obesity is a medical condition, sometimes considered a disease, in which excess body fat has accumulated to such an extent that it may negatively affect health. People are classified as obese when their body mass index (BMI)—a person's ...

, and

COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by a virus, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first known case was identified in Wuhan, China, in December 2019. The disease quickly ...

. Many Marshallese are

Baptist Baptists form a major branch of Protestantism distinguished by baptizing professing Christian believers only ( believer's baptism), and doing so by complete immersion. Baptist churches also generally subscribe to the doctrines of soul compe ...

. The Marshallese Bible study group at Cross Church, a Baptist congregation in Springdale, has grown quickly in recent years, although the service is done mostly in English, since the church lacks ministers who speak fluent Marshallese. Children born in the United States to Marshallese families have dual citizenship.

Notable people

* Anju Jason, taekwondo practitioner *

Todd Lyght Todd William Lyght (born February 9, 1969) is a former professional American football player and former defensive backs coach for the Notre Dame Fighting Irish. Lyght played in the NFL for 12 seasons from 1991 to 2002, finishing with 37 interce ...

, American football player * Haley Nemra, middle-distance runner * Kathy Jetn̄il-Kijiner, poet and

climate change activist Individual action on climate change can include personal choices in many areas, such as diet, travel, household energy use, consumption of goods and services, and family size. Individuals can also engage in local and political advocacy around issu ...

References

External links

Marshall Islanders: Migration Patterns and Health-Care Challenges

{{Pacific Islander Americans American people of Marshallese descent Marshallese American Oceanian American Pacific Islands American

History

Demography

Notable people

See also

References

External links