Silove then describes the clash between the burgeoning numbers of refugees worldwide and the erosion of governmental protections for asylum seekers, especially in the wake of Sept. 11, 2001. In previous decades, collective shame about the Holocaust spawned enlightened refugee policies throughout the world. Silove notes that a paradigmatic retreat in these attitudes occurred with the "refugee fatigue" toward Indochinese refugees in the 1970s. Successive waves of Vietnamese refugees went from receiving warm welcomes in countries such as the United States to spending long periods in refugee camps, which then became prison-like detention centers. During the past two decades, the number of refugees worldwide has tripled, further straining resources and goodwill. Tragically, "In the public mind, the war against terrorism has become confused with the challenge posed by asylum seekers, a blurring of issues seemingly fostered by political rhetoric" (p. 17).