"Everything was ok before the war started. I had a descent job that paid good enough for me to buy an apartment in a good neighborhood in Baghdad." These are the words of the forty year old MJ who has recently arrived in the United States as an Iraqi refugee. He continues describing the situation during the war "the business had gone bad, and the company I used to work for was shut down. The job I got after that did not pay off my bills, but I knew that all the economy had gone bad and I would not be able to find anything better in those tough times. One morning I went to my barber hoping I would get a haircut. I knew all the men there and we were smoking and drinking coffee. I needed some water so I ran to get some from the small fridge behind the counter. Suddenly, four armed men with faces covered pushed the door open and with their machine guns killed everybody in the shop. I hid behind the counter until I heard them leave. After that day, nothing was the same anymore."

He adds " I was hospitalized for Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. After that I moved to Syria. When the war started in Syria, both of the fighting sides thought Iraqis were against them. When our neighbors were murdered in their house, I knew they were coming for me and my family. Seeking refuge in the United States was my only way of survival."

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