Welcome Iraqi Interpreter to USA
Donation protected
Dear Friends, Family, and Supporters,
We are asking for your help to support Malek [name has been changed for client's protection], a CUNY IRAP refugee client who arrived this week in the United States. Malek risked his life serving the U.S. as an interpreter and engineer. Because of his U.S. affiliation, he received repeated threats to his life. He was finally granted his visa to immigrate to this country just over a week ago.
After a vetting process that lasted close to three years, Malek and his family received their visas in the mail the same day that American news outlets began reporting that President Trump planned to sign an executive order banning the entry of all refugees and visa holders from Iraq to the U.S.
CUNY IRAP immediately worked to arrange travel for Malek and his family and booked him on the next available flight out of Iraq.
The executive order was signed while they were mid-air and Malek was detained for more than 12 hours overnight upon his arrival, despite his valid visa status and his years of service to the United States. He was finally released after a sleepless night and he and his family have since been staying in New York City while our team works to find them more permanent housing in their final destination.
In order to help Malek's family get on their feet, we hope you will contribute anything you can so they may begin their lives safely and securely in the United States. Any money raised will go toward plane tickets, transportation, food, clothes, an apartment, and medical care. We believe that $25,000 will be enough to get them started. All the money raised here will go directly to Malek's family or to cover costs already incurred in their travel to the United States. Every donation, no matter the size, gets us closer to our goal for Malek's family. We appreciate whatever you are able to give.
_ _
1. Who we are: CUNY IRAP is a chapter of the International Refugee Assistance Project based at CUNY School of Law. The individual who began this page, Gregory Fries, is a third year law student at CUNY and has been volunteering on this case since 2014.
2. Where we're from: the law school is based in Long Island City, NY.
3. Our relationship to the parties we're raising funds for: We are the legal team that represented these clients in their Special Immigrant Visa applications for the past two-and-a-half years.
4. How the funds will be spent: the funds will be spent to reimburse the legal team for the emergency expenses of flights and lodging for the clients' resettlement; all remaining funds - the vast majority of the money - will be given directly to the clients to begin their life in the U.S., including housing costs, transportation, and support for their children.
5. How we intend to get the funds to those in need: we are in regular communication with our clients and hope to directly transfer their funds to a U.S.-based account once we've helped them set one up.
We are asking for your help to support Malek [name has been changed for client's protection], a CUNY IRAP refugee client who arrived this week in the United States. Malek risked his life serving the U.S. as an interpreter and engineer. Because of his U.S. affiliation, he received repeated threats to his life. He was finally granted his visa to immigrate to this country just over a week ago.
After a vetting process that lasted close to three years, Malek and his family received their visas in the mail the same day that American news outlets began reporting that President Trump planned to sign an executive order banning the entry of all refugees and visa holders from Iraq to the U.S.
CUNY IRAP immediately worked to arrange travel for Malek and his family and booked him on the next available flight out of Iraq.
The executive order was signed while they were mid-air and Malek was detained for more than 12 hours overnight upon his arrival, despite his valid visa status and his years of service to the United States. He was finally released after a sleepless night and he and his family have since been staying in New York City while our team works to find them more permanent housing in their final destination.
In order to help Malek's family get on their feet, we hope you will contribute anything you can so they may begin their lives safely and securely in the United States. Any money raised will go toward plane tickets, transportation, food, clothes, an apartment, and medical care. We believe that $25,000 will be enough to get them started. All the money raised here will go directly to Malek's family or to cover costs already incurred in their travel to the United States. Every donation, no matter the size, gets us closer to our goal for Malek's family. We appreciate whatever you are able to give.
_ _
1. Who we are: CUNY IRAP is a chapter of the International Refugee Assistance Project based at CUNY School of Law. The individual who began this page, Gregory Fries, is a third year law student at CUNY and has been volunteering on this case since 2014.
2. Where we're from: the law school is based in Long Island City, NY.
3. Our relationship to the parties we're raising funds for: We are the legal team that represented these clients in their Special Immigrant Visa applications for the past two-and-a-half years.
4. How the funds will be spent: the funds will be spent to reimburse the legal team for the emergency expenses of flights and lodging for the clients' resettlement; all remaining funds - the vast majority of the money - will be given directly to the clients to begin their life in the U.S., including housing costs, transportation, and support for their children.
5. How we intend to get the funds to those in need: we are in regular communication with our clients and hope to directly transfer their funds to a U.S.-based account once we've helped them set one up.
Organizer and beneficiary
Gregory Fries
Organizer
New York, NY
Katy Naples-Mitchell
Beneficiary
