(Pics have been made into cartoons for protection. Monique is afraid.)

“Monique” and Peter need our help! New Haven County residents!

They have been together since 2017, and they got married in 2024.

Monique is from a Caribbean country and has lived full-time in the United States for almost 10 years. She first received a visiting visa in 2011. She eventually was forced to leave Jamaica in 2016 to come to the US permanently, as she was escaping an abusive relationship — she left behind a home and business.

In 2017, she applied for asylum, which is still pending 8 years later. She has never missed an appointment, and she never got notice to come to Immigration for anything else in that time. She left her country because she was afraid for her life. Going back is not an option.

Peter and Monique got married last year, which eventually led to the discovery that a mistake was made in 2011 on her original application. Peter depends on Monique, a CNA, for his emotional and physical well-being. Both partners suffer from health issues, some as a result of the stress of living under the threat of being kidnapped and deported. Monique now has a heart issue, and Peter has genetic liver issues. They also have mounting prescription costs.

Monique says, “All I want is peace.” And we can help a little with that by taking away the stress of more legal bills. They have depleted their savings on immigration attorneys and need our help now for an appeal, which was to be filed by November 15 .

They received word last week that the petition (I-130) was rejected due to a technicality from Monique’s 2011 application. An errant “X” was placed where it didn’t belong by a professional who helped her with the application. This is all it takes these days.

She is unsure what her status will be if the appeal is rejected, but we can give her the best chance of success by helping her pay the lawyer she has retained. The cost is $3,000 for the appeal, plus $1,010 for US Citizenship and Immigration Services just to process the paperwork. They have spent a total of $16,000 on Monique’s quest for citizenship. Our goal is $4,100 for the appeal, but if we raise more, they can cut down the legal debt a little.

This is how we combat the hate that we are seeing in the world right now. We help each other. Thank you for reading this, and thank you for your donation. Donations will go directly to Monique's bank account from which she will pay her attorney, Neal Guttenberg.