ABSTRACT
In the decade and a half after 1945 the migration in various parts of the world of 40,000,000 human beings led many to speak of their time as "the century of the uprooted" or "the age of the homeless man". The Survey Committee's report stated that the work of the voluntary agencies should supplement that of official organizations, which, in view of the magnitude of the problem, must take primary responsibility. The emphasis in the report on the primary responsibility of government was followed by carefully planned public discussion and pressure designed to persuade Washington to broaden still further the admission policy of the Truman Directive. Of special importance was the 1953 Refugee Relief Act passed on the special urging of President Eisenhower. It sought to deal with major problems created by the large number of refugees escaping into the free countries of Europe from behind the Iron Curtain.
