Refugees Archives - Page 2 of 3

August 2017 Client of the Month- Milan Stankovic

September 1, 2017

This month we are thrilled to recognize Milan Stankovic as our client of the month. After filing his I-589 asylum application and three evidentiary filings, several hours of grueling interviews, numerous status inquiries, and six...

Whitman Walker Health Presents Ava Benach with Fenner Award for Public Service

May 24, 2017

Earlier this month, Ava Benach received the Fenner Award for Public Service from Whitman Walker Health Legal Services. She got it for doing what she does best-- winning cases! The award recognizes the unique relationship...

Benach Collopy Asylum Summer Fellowship 2017

March 27, 2017

The Benach Collopy Asylum Summer Fellowship 2017 I have been so lucky to get to know so many brave, hard-working, family-oriented, and generous people from all over the globe. They all shared one thing in...

Clients of the Month February 2017- Karla and Anthony Duran

February 7, 2017

During these difficult times for our country, when the Trump Administration has suspended the refugee resettlement program and attempted to paint all refugees as terrorists and security threats, Benach Collopy has continued the fight for...

Remember the St. Louis

January 27, 2017

Today, on Holocaust Remembrance Day, I am thinking about the M.S. St. Louis. In 1939, while war waged in Europe, the M.S. St. Louis, a transatlantic ship carrying Jewish refugees fleeing the Third Reich, reached...

Clients of the Month- October 2016: 5 Child Refugees!

October 20, 2016

[caption id="attachment_1735" align="alignright" width="324"] Liana Montecinos[/caption] This post was written by Liana Montecinos. Thirsty, hungry, at the brink of exhaustion, and with fear of violent deaths looming large back home is how many Central American...

TPS for Syrians extended by DHS

August 5, 2016

[caption id="attachment_1599" align="aligncenter" width="1000"] CIS is responsible for TPS applications for Syrians[/caption] The Department of Homeland Security announced on Monday August 1 that it would re-designate Syria for Temporary Protected Status (TPS) through March 2018....

Refugee Olympic Team at 2016 Olympic Games

August 4, 2016

[caption id="attachment_2773" align="aligncenter" width="966"] Faces of the Refugee Olympic Team[/caption] On August 5, the 2016 Olympic Games will open in Rio de Janeiro. I love the Olympics because it is a time when we all...

Guest Blog Post: CUA Law Students Win Asylum for a Salvadoran Mother Who Fell Victim to Gang Violence

August 1, 2016

This post is by Tagreed "Tina" Nafisi and Junou Odige, law students at Catholic University. In October, when we met Martha* we could not even begin to fathom the endless hurdles we might have to...

Why Should Congress Support the Refugee Protection Act of 2016?

July 28, 2016

“We live in the age of the refugee, the age of the exile.” Ariel Dorfman (Argentine-Chilean playwright, academic and human rights activist) By Satsita Muradova If someone asked me what was the most difficult decision...

GUEST BLOG: “More Than a Grade: How our Salvadoran Asylum Client Taught us What it Takes to be an Attorney” by Abdulmajeed Alhogbani, with contributions by Barrett Bles, Recent Graduates of the CUA Columbus School of Law

June 6, 2016

"Ok, I'd be willing to stipulate to humanitarian asylum." We were approximately 30 minutes into the recess the Immigration Judge took, during which we were supposed to negotiate a favorable solution for our client, when...

Introducing our Fellow for Trans Asylum Issues and Celebrating Thirty Years of Whitman Walker Health Legal Services

May 22, 2016

[caption id="attachment_2697" align="aligncenter" width="458"] Naya, Celina, Liana, Ava and Cori and Amy from Whitman Walker[/caption] This is a big week at Benach Collopy as a number of important projects are coming together and we are...

Benach Collopy Announces Summer Fellowship for Law Students Interested in Trans Asylum Issues

March 7, 2016

I have been so lucky to get to know so many brave, hard-working, family-oriented, and generous people from all over the globe. They all shared one thing in common: a willingness to...

Dree Collopy on Central American Refugees and Asylum Law

February 12, 2016

Writing in today's Leadership Blog from the American Immigration Lawyers Association, Dree Collopy explains the fundamentals of asylum law the critics, journalists, and politicians fail to understand: Any refusal to recognize gender-motivated violence such as...

Client of the Month January 2016- Monique Kagayigayi

January 12, 2016

Our Client of the Month for January 2016 is Monique Kagayigayi. A survivor of the Rwandan genocide whose asylum claim was granted in 2004, Monique just received her green card after more than 10 years...