Immigrants comprise most of the minority population and have been favorably welcomed by previous and current government  in Washington State. The harsh economic and religious regulations in Africa, Asia, South America, and the Middle East have forced millions of migrants to look for shelter in the United States of America. The U.S. government is leaving no stone unturned to ensure the care of these settlers. There are, nonetheless, immigration bottlenecks for immigrants who face disproportionate disparities in every aspect of life. The conditions exacerbate for individuals from developing economies with poor sociocultural and socioeconomic backgrounds, especially those arriving for asylum purposes. Immigrants face many challenges arising from the change in social structure and culture when they immigrate, which affects social environment, work, and  health behavior domains. Differences in the culture of the new country add to the possibility of internal and external discord that may affect the mental health of these immigrants. This highlights the goals of Shalom Outreach Washington in bridging the research gaps to identifying the sociodemographic factors sustaining the societal problems in the city.

In Washington State, diseases, injury, premature deaths, and disability increase for this minorities. There are huge disparities for healthcare attainment, acquisition of economic and material resources for this population. Immigrant minorities do not choose to belong to this group and are forced to experience lower life expectancy, decreased quality of life, perceptions of injustice, and loss of economic opportunities, and perceptions of injustice (CDC, 2004). The majority actually fled from adverse political impasse, civil wars, corruption, inadequate healthcare, and religious persecutions. They gave up everything to preserve their lives and now must learn a new way of life difficult in a polarized environment. Immigrants are usually caught in a web of decreased productivity, low income earning, increased healthcare costs, and social inequity. Immigrants may experience increased barriers to mental health services due to language problems, cultural differences and limited health care access. Prior levels of individual educational accomplishments notwithstanding, some religious and cultural practices from their homelands pose oppositions to or acceptance of modern health interventions, such as immunization. Thus, they are exposed to a magnified adverse impact.

​