This month marks a year since the state of Texas began bussing hundreds of migrants to Chicago, New York, Washington, D.C., and other Welcoming Cities. In Chicago, NIJC and organizations across the city have been working to provide resources to help these individuals and families settle into their new home. At the beginning of this year, we told you about how staff and volunteers from across NIJC and our pro bono network provided legal orientations to people when buses first started arriving at Chicago’s Union Station. In the following months, NIJC and partners developed legal orientation materials and continued to offer legal orientation sessions via the Chicago Immigration Court Helpdesk. |
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Today, even as people continue arriving in our city in hopes of rebuilding their lives and seeking legal protections, those who arrived last fall are approaching the U.S. government-imposed one-year deadline to apply for asylum. NIJC and our pro bono legal partners from around Chicago recently launched workshops to assist people in filling out their asylum applications before their one-year filing deadline. These pro bono asylum workshops ensure that people are best prepared when they apply for asylum, increasing their chances at securing protection. “What we've been seeing is that a lot of people who have recently arrived have said to me ‘well I thought I had to wait the year and then I was able to apply,’" said Laura Pachón, NIJC project coordinator for the Recent Arrivals Project. “Depending on what their procedural postures are, they either have to file with the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services or with Immigration Court, but asylum seekers don’t know that. We've seen individuals apply on their own and have their applications rejected because they've filed with the wrong government agency. Which disheartens them because they don't know why the application could not proceed.” |
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NIJC encourages community members who are providing support of any kind to new arrivals in Chicago to help spread the word about our free legal workshops. The first step to sign up is to fill out a brief online eligibility screening form on NIJC’s website. NIJC’s work with people recently arriving is happening even as we continue to provide free legal services through the city’s Legal Protection Fund to long-time Chicago residents like Pedro.* |
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A Lower West Side resident and a father of two U.S. citizen children, Pedro has resided in Chicago for 40 years. He sought NIJC’s legal representation in 2017, when immigration authorities initiated deportation proceedings against him. This year, the immigration judge granted Pedro cancellation of removal. He is now a lawful permanent resident, which means he now has a green card, and no longer fears being separated from his family. In five years, he will be eligible to apply for U.S. citizenship. “I never believed that I could receive so much help, but [NIJC] helped me out a lot. I am very grateful,” said Pedro. |
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Read more about the LPF’s impact on Chicago’s immigrant residents. Thank you for supporting NIJC and being a part of the community welcoming people who are starting new lives in the United States. -Samantha Ruvalcaba
Communications Coordinator, National Immigrant Justice Center P.S. If you're interested in getting more involved, we have a number of ways you can help listed on our website. *Name has been changed to protect privacy |
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