By Janet Hosey

The Rohingya people, described as one of the most persecuted minorities in the world, are making a home for themselves in the Chicago area. In recent years, the region has welcomed one of the largest Rohingya communities in the United States.

Discriminated against and repressed by the governments of Myanmar for decades, the Rohingya are forced to live in camps where they are unable to get adequate food, water, education or employment. The primarily Islamic people had to practice their religion in secret for fear of retribution.

But here in the United States, including at the Rohingya Culture Center (RCC) on the north side of Chicago, they can live freely as a community and start to put down roots.

NorthShore is proud to have the Rohingya Culture Center as one of its 2023 NorthShore Community Investment Fund (CIF) partners. This fund is one of many ways in which the health system seeks to engage locally and provide community-connected care that supports the health, wellbeing and economic security of neighbors in need

“This (center) is very important for our community and for our people,” said Abdul Jabbar Amanullah, senior case manager at the Rohingya Culture Center. “This is home for them, for the village, because they come here, they can meet each other, they can get to know each other, they can make friends, they can practice their religions, everything.”

The RCC was founded and is operated by the Rohingya people but is open to all. It provides not only space for community gatherings, but also social services, employment assistance, educational support, and senior visits. Owning their own property is especially meaningful to this persecuted community that has been denied access to their ancestral homeland.

The NorthShore University HealthSystem (NorthShore), which includes Swedish Hospital and Northwest Community Healthcare, believes truly caring for its communities starts with a clear understanding of local health needs and how to becomes involve in serving up care solutions that measurably work.

The NorthShore CIF is honored to support the RCC with:

• Helping RCC achieve its dream to have a permanent home for current and future Rohingya
• Funding toward purchasing a building for the RCC
• Supporting expansion of education, wellness and social services

Learn how the RCC is serving the needs of Chicago’s growing Rohingya and refugee community and why having a home of their own is essential to the wellbeing of this long-persecuted minority.

Learn more about the NorthShore Community Investment Fund.

Learn more about the Rohingya Culture Center.