Alma

“Alma” was born in El Salvador and met “Jose”, the father of her children there. One day Jose told Alma that he was going to the U.S. to work and would send money for her and the children but never did. Eventually, Alma decided to make the journey to the U.S. with their two children because one was very ill …

Jorge

Jorge, a young man in his early twenties, fled from drug traffickers in Honduras after they had murdered over five members of his immediate family and threatened to kill him as well. Jorge was detained crossing the Texas border and was transferred to the Broward Transitional Center. AI Justice worked with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (“ICE”) to negotiate and secure …

Raul

Raul, a man who was blinded in a workplace injury, is almost completely dependent on his family for care. Although he has lived in the U.S. for many years and is married to a legal permanent resident, Raul was undocumented. He and his wife have four U.S. citizen children, all of whom are young adults. Due to his eye injury, …

Rebecca

Rebecca was trapped in a physically and emotionally abusive marriage; whenever she tried to flee, her spouse threatened to have her deported and retain full custody of their U.S. citizen daughter, Samantha. Rebecca was concerned that if she were forced to leave Samantha behind with her father, Samantha would become the target of his abuse. AI Justice was successful in …

Luis

Luis and his family were living in an area of Mexico where drug cartels routinely killed and harassed people. After being threatened and extorted, he and his family fled to the United States in fear for their lives. Luis was about 8 years old at the time. In 2012, Luis heard about a federal program that granted temporary relief from …

Javier and Dennis

Javier and Dennis, twin brothers from Honduras, made their way to the border alone. Traveling mostly on foot, the boys ran out of food and water during their journey and were forced to drink water from contaminated streams. The brothers undertook this dangerous trip because it seemed their only chance of survival. Abandoned by their parents and raised by violent …

Jill

Jill was only 15 when her mother took her to a bar and asked her to flirt with older men. Slowly but surely, her own mother groomed her into the sex trade. When Jill would complain and say she would not want to do it, her step-father would beat her. For more than two years, Jill lived a nightmare. Her …

Momoko

Momoko came legally to the United States and later married a US citizen who abused her. She ended up in a homeless shelter to escape. At [AI Justice], they were very understanding about domestic-violence cases and didn’t treat me like a client. They treated me like a special person. I wish I had a picture of when my life was …

Maria

Maria was among a group of women from Mexico who were promised legal jobs in the United States, but were instead forced into slavery and prostitution. Their lives were threatened if they resisted. We were kept in a place far worse than prison. Once the police found us, we spent five months in detention. Our high hopes for America turned …

Oscar

When Oscar was a boy in Honduras, his parents operated a small computer repair shop and restaurant. The infamous MS-13 Gang ran rampant in the area, and they repeatedly extorted “protection” money from Oscar’s parents. What they paid was never enough. One day, the gang killed Oscar’s father. A few months later, Oscar and his mother watched in horror as …