Protecting Our Neighbors By: Jennifer Healey, Staff Attorney I’ve heard people use different metrics to judge a nation as a whole: average vacation hours per year, collective debt, treatment of animals, donations to charity, and the list goes on. I think the heart of any country manifests—at least in part—through its humanitarian laws: whether they …
The American Dream and all its Glory: A Family’s Immigration Story By: Pratibha Agarwal, Board Member Why is immigration important to me? To say that immigration has shaped me as a person and given me all that I have is an understatement. When Just Neighbors asked me to write about why I am passionate about …
The American Dream And All Its Glory: A Family’s Immigration Story Read More »
Helya was madly in love with her future husband as soon as they met in Estonia. When he asked her to marry him, she willingly left her home and moved to the USA. The future looked promising. Helya secured a conditional Permanent Resident Card (green card), went to school for skin care and earned her esthetician …
Meena came to us because his wallet had been stolen, and his Green Card was in it. He needed our help in filing for a replacement Green Card. This case was slow going at first because we needed Meena’s help in gathering documents to apply for a fee waiver, since he did not have money …
“I’m no longer a child and cannot be dependent on my parents. My father, our main supporter of our family, is chronically ill with kidney failure, which requires a lot of expenses. I plan to go to college this upcoming year and need to have a way to provide for myself away from home. It …
Joseph was only three years old when he heard loud noises outside of his house in Somalia. His home had been bombed, and the rest of his family had fled for their lives. When relatives came back for Joseph, he was severely injured and almost deaf. His parents were nowhere to be found, and Joseph’s …
Solomon had not seen his wife Sarah and their three children in two years, but the children had far from forgotten him. Five-year-old Mariam called to tell him that she was learning to write her name, and she sent him drawings by mail. Twelve-year-old Meena reminded his father of the promise to buy him a …
Beatriz came to the U.S. from Guatemala in early 2007. She worked hard to support herself at a local restaurant in northern Virginia. While there, she met Jose, a frequent patron of the restaurant. They dated briefly. During that time, Jose went to the restaurant where Beatriz worked every night to keep an eye on …
Surviving Violent Crime and Obtaining the Right to Work Read More »
In late 2009, Helen was struggling to get on her feet. As a refugee from her home country, Liberia, she and her family had recently suffered extreme hardship in refugee camps in a second country. She felt blessed to have been relocated to a third country: the United States. Only about 1 percent of refugees …
Viola is from Honduras. She moved out of her family home at the age of 13 to escape being sexually abused by a family member. When she was 16, she married a police officer who was very well connected with the local government in their hometown. Viola’s husband was incredibly abusive and beat her regularly. …
The mission of Just Neighbors is to provide immigration legal services to low-income immigrants and refugees in Virginia, especially those who are most vulnerable. We also seek to foster enriching experiences that enhance awareness and mutual understanding among our clients, volunteers, staff and community.
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