the Department of Homeland Security. Afghan Allies Protection Act of 2009 A news reporter in 2001 randomly stated, without providing any references or sources, that there were 200,000 Afghan Americans. This wild assumption probably included Afghan Canadians. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, there were approximately 65,972 Afghan-Americans in 2006. The American Community Survey (ACS) estimated a total of 94,726 Afghan foreign-born immigrants were residing and working in the United States in 2016, which shows a 30% increase in the last ten years. Since 2005, thousands of Afghans have been admitted to the United States under the Special Immigrant Visa (SIV) program. Congress passed the Afghan Allies Protection Act of 2009, which was extended in 2014. Afghans who had put their lives at risk during the US-led war in Afghanistan became eligible for SIVs. This program for Afghans created a legal pathway towards U.S. citizenship for the recipients and their immediate family members. Evacuations of 2021 Large numbers of Afghans, including those that worked with the United States, moved to the country following the Taliban take over of Kabul in August 2021. Discrimination of Refugees Afghans who went through resettlement difficulties may experience discrimination, worsening the trauma. Culture As other immigrants in the United States, Afghan Americans have gradually adopted the American way of life. But many of those who were born in Afghanistan still highly value Afghan culture. For example, they often wear at home Afghan clothes, watch Afghan shows, listen to Afghan music, eat mostly Afghan food, and enthusiastically keep up with Afghan politics. They also value their oral tradition of story telling. The stories they sometimes tell are about Mullah Nasreddin, Afghan history, myths and religions. Afghan Americans celebrate August 19 as Afghan Independence Day, which relates to August 1919, the date when Afghanistan became fully independent after the signing of the Anglo-Afghan Treaty. Small festivals are held in cities that have Afghan communities, usually at the parks where black, red and green colored Afghan flags are spotted around cars. Eid and Nowruz remain popular festivals for Afghans. The 2021 American sitcom United States of Al featured American and Afghan culture. A The Washington Post article from October 2001 claims that the Afghan-American community, "concentrated in the towns of Fremont and Hayward, is in many ways a microcosm of the country that's nearly a dozen time zones away." Various members of the community commented that the Afghan