My experiences working in refugee resettlement. 120 stories in 120 days.

Day 7

My first job out of college was working in a shelter for asylum seekers on the US & Canadian border. We helped refugees from around the world who were seeking protection both in the US and Canada. Often times our small, 118 bed shelter, would swell well beyond capacity as we housed as many individuals and families as possible. Refugees came from all corners of the globe - Argentina, Colombia, Afghanistan, Turkmenistan, Rwanda, Iran - and many other countries. A big population received by the shelter were Tamil refugees, fleeing civil war and violent persecution in their home country of Sri Lanka.

Many Sri Lankan families lived in the shelter, waiting to have their cases heard in the US, or waiting for an opportunity to make a refugee claim in Canada. Although I worked in the front office, I was recruited by the legal department to help with the preparation of asylum claims for several families. We were working against a deadline and we didn't have much time to process their claims. I was given a crash course of how to prepare an asylum claim and sent to meet with a Sri Lankan family in a quiet church office.

I spent the better part of the day listening to the parents share their story of why they were forced to flee. Although the details have long left my memory, the emotions of that day are still fresh. I remember feeling horrified at what the family had suffered because of their ethnicity. I remember feeling angry that they had lost loved ones, including children. I remember feeling humbled when they talked about their hopes and aspirations for their children. And I remember feeling grateful that I had the fortune to be born and raised in the United States.

I completed my first asylum claim, a tedious process that includes not only preparing a claimant statement, but also hours of research, documentation, and organization. It was hard, mentally exhausting work, but I was hooked. This was the foundation on my work with refugees.

The family was eventually granted refugee status and were able to settle down in safety. The children went to school, the parents went to work. Years later Sri, the father, called me to share how their lives had progressed. The children excelled in school, his wife was studying to earn her degree, and the family became had become part of their new community. Sri thanked me for the help I gave his family, even though they were never welcomed in the United States.

The family had been granted refugee status in Canada at a time when it would have been nearly impossible for Sri and his family to receive protection in the United States. Today, as we enter the third week of this new administration, I am reminded of this time, shortly after September 2001, when we reacted to threats but closing our hearts. Then, like now, the rights of immigrants were trampled. Refugees were set aside.

We overcame fear by remembering who we are as a people. Today we must continue this struggle - to be the home of the poor but hard working, to care for the persecuted but brave, to welcome the stranger.

Be active, be vocal, remember who we are!

Having known Sri has enriched my life, just as the US Refugee Admissions Program enriches American communities.

#IStandWithRefugees