Help Djas Become More Mobile

Hi friends,

This is our new friend Djas (pronounced "Joss") from Chad, who is currently filing for political asylum here in the U.S. along with his wife Danielle and his two daughters Epiphany (5) and Maya (18 months).

Djas has an amazing story of survival, which we'll get to later. But his more immediate need is to be more mobile. You see, Djas had polio as an infant and crawled during his childhood until a doctor operated on him so he could stand up using crutches. He uses them to this day, but he tires very easily since he uses his upper body to bears his entire weight (and he is a big guy). Djas has to rest several times to just walk one block to his daughter's new school.

In spite of his handicap and immobility, Djas exudes positivity and gratititude. Since fleeing Chad in December, he and the family have landed in Washington DC and recently began a new life in their own apartment with the help of the Department of Human Services. Since they left everything they owned behind, they have had to start completely over.

To make the most of his new life, we are starting this GoFundMe to see if together we can get him a powered mobility scooter so he doesn't have to stay trapped inside his house. A scooter would let him pick up Epiphany from school, accompany his girls to the playground, go grocery shopping, and even take the metro to see the sights downtown! It would allow him to do so much. It would make Danielle's life easier, too, for sure.

Through the power of crowdfunding, we can improve the quality of Djas's life. Please consider giving to help this man get around.

NO AMOUNT IS TOO SMALL. We realize you give to other causes and hope you can feel comfortable giving $5 or $10. YOU CAN ALSO GIVE ANONYMOUSLY.

Our goal is to raise US$2000, but if we happen to raise more money it will be given to the family to use for groceries.

You can read Djas' story below.

Thank you so much!

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My name is Djasra Ratebaye, born in Chad on July 29, 1978. At 9 months, I got polio that resulted in the paralysis of my legs. I am married and a father of two lovely daughters (5 years old and 18 months). I fled my country with my little family and come to the US seeking political asylum.

The political situation in Chad became life threatening because of my affiliation with The Transformers political party and WAKIT TAMA, the main civil society coalition calling on the military who took power in April 2021 to turn the power over to civilians. The military crackdown on all opposition voices resulted in arbitrary mass killings, imprisonment, disappearance and judicial harassment. It prompted me to leave the country seeking safe haven for myself and for my family.

For instance, an Oct. 20 protest was brutally attacked by the military resulting in more that 120 people killed in the capital N'djamena, and more than 3,000 people were arrested and sent to high security prison in the desert. Among those who were arrested were 97 kids, and the youngest prisoner was 9 years old. None of them had access to proper representation or medical or family assistance.

I actually spent part of my childhood as a refugee in Cameroon when my father took our family there to flee from Chad's civil war back in 1982. After our family returned to Chad, I worked at the US Embassy on political and human rights issues such as human trafficking, childhood marriage, forced labor and female genital mutilation. I also worked for many years at NGOs supported by USAID-funded programs.

I came to the US with the will and determination to restart my life, find jobs to sustain my family, provide my daughters with better education and life opportunities, and heal from everything we’ve been through.