February 2009

Client Story

Silvia came to Just Neighbors last summer because she had simply had enough.  Although she had tried staying at a homeless shelter, her nine year old son's medical condition made this challenging.  Silvia even lived out of her car with her son for several weeks, which also proved futile.  She has endured many years of beating and mistreatment, and finally decided to call the police for help.  Her husband was arrested and convicted of domestic abuse.  Silvia, who is from Central America, was referred to Just Neighbors through a domestic-abuse counselor, and because her husband is a Legal Permanent Resident (LPR), Just Neighbors was able to file a petition for Silvia based on the Violence Against Women's Act (VAWA).

A VAWA petition requires proof of a valid marriage to either a U.S. citizen or a LPR, evidence of abuse, and evidence that the petitioner is a person of good moral character (usually satisfied through a background check showing no arrests or convictions).  Silvia's petition was over one and a half inches thick with evidence.

Most applications like Silvia's take about a year for Immigration to process.  Thankfully for Silvia, her petition was approved in record time: six weeks!  Silvia cried freely upon hearing the news that her petition had been approved.

Because she is married to a LPR, she must now wait several years before she can apply for her own green card, but in the meantime she will have legal status here and be able to work legally.  She is working hard to get out of the house where she and her son still reside with the abuser: Silvia will soon have a work permit and a valid driver's license and be able to sign off on a lease of her own.  She is so excited about her prospects!

However, our work with Silvia is not yet finished.  During our first intake-interview with her last summer, Silvia revealed her disturbing story that began years before she met her abuser, near the U.S.-Mexican border.  Silvia had been held by coyotes for TWO YEARS when she first tried to cross the border in 1998.  Silvia and her boyfriend had crossed the border with the help of a coyote, presuming the boyfriend's uncle would pay the coyote's fee, as he had promised.  However, the coyotes had not been paid, and she and her boyfriend were not freed until her impoverished family, scattered throughout Central America and the United States, could save up the money to get her out.  After two years of gathering the family's savings, Silvia's sister drove to the coyotes and delivered the money, freeing Silvia, her boyfriend, and their newborn son that Silvia had while in captivity.  They had no prenatal care, only one meal a day, no doctor's visits, no hospital birth, and most importantly, no birth certificate.  This child is in a very unusual and sad position: He was born in the United States but cannot prove it.

After many phone calls back and forth with the VAWA unit, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services decided that it would not add the son as a derivate beneficiary to Silvia's petition because he was born in the U.S. and is therefore ineligible for any sort of immigration benefit.  However, the child cannot get access to healthcare or any other benefits for U.S. citizens because he cannot prove he was born in this country.  After researching and gathering some necessary documentation, Just Neighbors referred Silvia to the law firm with which we partner, Foley & Lardner.  A pro bono attorney there is currently working on petitioning the State of California for a Delayed Registration of Birth.  We truly hope this is successful so this child can become a child with a country.  Otherwise, he could forever be a human in limbo with no proof of birth from any country.

Silvia has been exceedingly grateful for all the help Just Neighbors has been able to provide her.  She has a long, hard road ahead of her, but with our help, she has begun a better life for both her and her son.  It has been a pleasure to serve her.

Good-bye Linda!

We are sad to announce that after two years of wonderful service to Just Neighbors, staff attorney Linda Johnson will be leaving Just Neighbors to join the U.S. Foreign Service as a Political Officer.

Linda writes: "While it's an exciting time for U.S. diplomacy and a tremendous position, the offer (based on a 2006 test) certainly caught me by surprise.  It is heartbreaking to leave staff and volunteers who are Just Neighbors.  I appreciate the window into the world that our clients have given me and know that working on behalf of victims of violence and refugees has equipped me well for my new job.  I see such great things in the future of Just Neighbors and hope to remain a part of it."

We will all miss Linda and wish her the best in her new position.

Where Are Our Clients From?

Just Neighbors began tracking the country of origin of our clients in 2005.  Since then, we have served immigrants and refugees from 102 different countries, reflecting the diversity of Northern Virginia.  We topped 100 countries this past year, serving clients for the first time from eleven countries: Bulgaria, Burundi, Canada, the Central African Republic, Estonia, Haiti, Kazakhstan, Kuwait, Mongolia, Sweden, and Zaire.

Since 2005, 45% of our clients have come from Central America, 16% from South America, 21% from Africa, 16% from Asia, 1% from Europe, and 1% from North America.  In 2008, Just Neighbors saw the highest percent increase of clients from Africa and Asia.

Around the Office

Just Neighbors' Executive Director Rob Rutland-Brown called into WAMU's Kojo Nnamdi show on Wednesday during a discussion on the immigration laws in Prince William County.  He expressed concern that when local police have the authority to ask about immigration status, trust is eroded between immigrants-- including victims of crimes-- and the police.  Victims of abuse who could be eligible for immigration benefits often are fearful of calling the police for help and remain in a dangerous situation.  To listen to the call and the response by Prince William County Chairman Corey Stewart, click here. (Go to 25:30 in the segment.)

We are grateful to Floris United Methodist Church for its ongoing support of our work.  Once again, the church will fund a significant portion of our work in the Herndon region this year and will provide an office for us in the church.  Floris has a reputation of outstanding outreach and service to the community and has fueled Just Neighbors' work in that region for eight years. 

Just Neighbors is also thankful to the Meyer Foundation for a generous grant for our work in the year ahead.  This support, our largest from a private foundation this year, will help us keep pace with the growing demand among low-income immigrants for our services.

Volunteer of the Month

When Just Neighbors started this monthly email in February 2006, we were originally hesitant to create a Volunteer of the Month section.  We worried that after six months we would run out of candidates.  Times have truly changed! Each month we have difficulty deciding among many amazing volunteers.

This month we honor Craig Sperling from Morrison and Foerster law firm.  Craig has been a regular volunteer at both the Falls Church and Herndon clinics for nearly two years.  In conducting intake with new clients, Craig is able to keep the clients focused on the questions while at the same time demonstrate a genuine concern for their situation.  We are grateful for his skill in working with the clients and with other volunteers.  Thank you Craig!