Latino Racial Justice Circle Inc.

This holiday season, the Latino Racial Justice Circle (LRJC) invites you to bring hope and safety to local immigrant youth. Through our partnership with the Pro Bono Resource Center (PBRC), we have identified three young people whose situations qualify them to remain safely in the United States, but to do so, they need immigration legal representation.

Immigrants who have legal counsel are 10x more likely to win their cases and be granted permission to stay in the U.S. Having legal representation opens the door to security, stability, and productivity for these youth.

Please join the LRJC to provide an opportunity for these immigrant teens to seek safety and security by contributing to our legal services fundraiser. Your donation can provide that support for these three young people:

1) Carlos also came to this country as an unaccompanied child, and now lives with his mom. The situation in his home country of Honduras was very difficult. His father abandoned the family when Carlos was very young, and his mother had already left for the U.S., so he had no family to support him in Honduras. He came to the U.S. alone four years ago, when he was only fifteen years old. It took Carlos a month to arrive to the U.S. through Mexico, where parts of his journey were dangerous and challenging, but ultimately he was able to reunite with his mother. If Carlos does not have legal representation, he risks being separated from his mother and returned to a country where he faces danger and lack of opportunity.

2) Diego is Carlos’ younger brother. Like Carlos, he came to the U.S. alone as an unaccompanied child. He entered the country two years ago when he was just fourteen years old, making the same journey that his brother had made earlier. Diego came to the U.S. to be reunited with his brother and mother and to have a life with more security. He needs legal representation so that he can stay with his family safely in the United States and have access to opportunities that are not available to him in Honduras.

3) Stay tuned! We have identified a third youth who needs help but we are still in the process of getting his information, as well as permission from him to share his story. This will be updated soon.

With your help, Carlos, Diego, and our third youth will be able to apply for a legal status called Special Immigrant Juvenile Status (SIJS), a pathway to residency for youth who, among other things, have been abused, abandoned, or neglected. They need your help to get immigration attorneys to apply for SIJS and be successful in their cases.

Your contribution can help open the door to a life of safety for these young people so that they can reunite with family and heal, grow, and live full lives free of fear and filled with opportunities.

Thank you for your generosity of heart and your generous contribution!

(Names have been changed for privacy.)

Sources and additional information:

Update: WOW! We cannot believe the response we got today. Thank you to everyone who donated to this fundraiser. This morning we set a goal of raising $18,000, and within less than nine hours we raised more than more than $98,000. The community response was truly amazing, and this is why we love Baltimore.

This holiday season, the Latino Racial Justice Circle (LRJC) invites you to bring hope and safety to local immigrant families. Through our partnership with the Pro Bono Resource Center, we have identified two families whose situations qualify them to remain safely in the United States, but to do so, they need immigration legal representation.

Immigrants who have legal counsel are 10x more likely to win their cases and be granted permission to stay in the U.S. The difference is even greater (14x) for immigrant women with children. Having legal representation opens doors for these families to the opportunity to build lives of security, stability, and productivity.

Please join the LRJC in opening the door for immigrants seeking safety and security by contributing to our legal services fundraiser. Your donation can provide that support for these two families:

1) Yanira and her four children -- This mother of four endured intimate partner violence in a country where women and children have few rights or protections. The abuser, her husband and father of her children, also harmed their oldest child. This family lives in fear as their abuser is in the U.S. They need help receiving legal protection from him and to fight being deported. If they cannot find representation to help them win their protection, they face the specter of being harmed in a country where violence against women occurs with impunity.

2) Francisco – this young man survived punishing threats by gangs which he refused to join in a country where the line between gangs and government is unclear due to corruption. He fled to the United States as a minor, entering the U.S. alone and placing his trust in the laws and protections offered by the U.S. Francisco has an option that can prevent his deportation and his potential murder by gang members, but time is running out. He has less than a year to complete the lengthy process of applying for Special Immigrant Juvenile Status and he cannot do it alone.

(Names have been changed for privacy.)

Your contribution can help open the door to a life of safety, where Yanira, her children and young, brave men like Francisco can heal, grow, and live full lives free from fear and filled with unlimited potential.

You can open that door. Thank you for your generosity of heart and your generous contribution!

Sources and additional information: