doubles in size during the summer internship season. Through research, education, and

Transcription

1 Ryan Schultheis The Advocates for Human Rights Minneapolis, MN Summer 2014 Interns are highly valued at the Advocates for Human Rights. In fact, the office doubles in size during the summer internship season. Through research, education, and advocacy, staff and interns work tirelessly to promote civil society and reinforce the rule of law. While the Advocates has many areas of specialty, I was fortunate to complete a 10- week internship in the Refugee and Immigrant Program. Since 1984, the Refugee and Immigrant Program has provided free legal representation to low- income asylum seekers residing in the states of Minnesota, North Dakota, and South Dakota. In order to be eligible for asylum, an immigrant must be physically present in the United States (with or without documentation) and demonstrate a fear of persecution in their country of origin. According to the United States asylum law, this past or future persecution must be based on race, religion, political opinion, nationality, or membership in a particular social group (i.e. LGBTQ). As an intern, I directly interacted with asylum seekers, learning much about the world and even more about myself. An asylum seeker s first contact with the Advocates is through the client line. Clients not only called with requests for representation, but also with general immigration questions. At the beginning of the internship, I felt rather incompetent. With little knowledge of the myriad acronyms, visa numbers, and regulations that constitute U.S. immigration policy, I put nearly every client on hold to ask someone in the office for help. The learning curve was steep, but quickly overcome. By week three, I felt confident in my understanding of the asylum process and of U.S. immigration law in general. While I could not give legal advice over the phone, I quickly gained the ability to understand a client s

2 history and guide them to the best possible resource. Conversations on the client line ranged from 30 seconds to 45 minutes (in English and Spanish!). If a client called with an asylum claim, I initiated the intake process. After obtaining demographic and procedural information, I would speak with the client about their fear of returning to their country of origin. Asking a person over the phone about experiences of trauma presents understandable challenges. The phone is rather impersonal, so clients oftentimes did not feel comfortable speaking about certain aspects of their histories. After obtaining a general outline of the client s asylum claim, I would draft a summary and pass it to an experienced staff attorney in the office. If the staff attorney believed that the client had a viable asylum claim, we would bring the client to the office for a lengthier in- person interview. In the one to two hour in- person interviews, we would obtain as much detail as possible about the client s case. From hard evidence to a consistent timeline of events, staff at the Advocates would ask strategic and often difficult questions. Recounting experiences of torture and trauma can be emotionally taxing (for the interviewer and interviewee alike). As such, personal breaks were encouraged during the interview. While I observed and interpreted these interviews at the beginning of the summer, I spent the last few weeks leading the discussion. This experience was overwhelming. As the principle interviewer, I was responsible for faithfully and accurately recounting the client s story during our weekly Monday deliberations. An immigrant s chances of being granted asylum greatly increase with an attorney; for many clients, it was pro bono representation or deportation. The Advocates has an impressive grant rate, meaning that it is rare for a client of the agency to be denied asylum. During Monday deliberations, staff and interns in the Refugee and Immigrant Program presented cases and ultimately decided which to accept.

3 From religious minorities in Russia to gay and lesbian individuals in Cameroon, I presented a variety of cases. Not all clients, however, could be accepted. This was perhaps the most difficult part of the internship. When you interview a client both on the phone and in person, you naturally develop a sense of attachment and responsibility. This feeling, however, often obscured the unfortunate reality of U.S. immigration and asylum law. The experienced attorneys in the office demonstrated how to objectively view a case and advise the client on the best possible course of action. My favorite phone calls started with Good morning, I have some good news for you today. Securing representation with an agency like the Advocates was a critical juncture in the lives of our clients. They now had an advocate, a hope of finally escaping the fear and persecution they had so unjustly endured. Once a client is accepted, a formal case write- up is created that includes procedural information, a detailed history, and country condition research. After a volunteer attorney is located, the case write- up, along with evidence (passport, visas, newspapers articles, hospital records and political party identification cards) is transmitted. The Advocates partners with firms and attorneys in the greater Minneapolis area to provide free representation for its clients. Interns at the Advocates who speak Spanish and/or French are often asked to interpret for client meetings at these firms. This past summer, a French speaking intern was asked to accompany a client and an attorney to an official asylum interview. The intern interpreted before a United States Customs and Immigration Service (USCIS) officer in a meeting that would determine whether or not the client was granted asylum. While I spent the majority of my time working on all aspects of the intake process, I performed other tasks as well. Work at the office was often tied to international events and

4 crises. For example, many of the clients we interviewed over the summer were children fleeing violence and impunity in countries like Honduras, El Salvador, and Guatemala. It was fascinating and frustrating to document firsthand the accounts of the humanitarian crisis in Central America and return to my apartment after work only to hear the story being framed as a border security issue or immigration problem. Toward the end of my internship, I was given the opportunity to research the United States response to unaccompanied immigrant children arriving at the border. This research was the start of a position paper that the Advocates will submit to the United Nations in April. The International Justice program at the Advocates will be preparing position papers on a variety of human rights issues in the United States as the country comes under Universal Periodic Review by UN member states in the spring of In addition to work in the office, I served as an interpreter for the Minnesota Dentention Project, a program co- sponsored by the Advocates that provides immigration detainees an attorney at their first hearing before an immigration judge. Immigrants are not entitled to a public defender in the United States, and thus are often forced to navigate a complicated legal system in an unfamiliar language. As an interpreter in the Spanish language, I facilitated attorney- client consultations prior to entering the court. I witnessed the critical thinking skills necessary to practice immigration law, as attorneys had roughly 10 minutes to meet and advise each detainee. After the consultations, I was allowed to observe immigration court hearings. In shackles and orange jumpsuits, immigrants (ages ) would be given group hearings, often deported or given continuances in mass. I had interviewed these men and women, stared them in the eye, and felt their suffering. My experience in the immigration court was beautifully frustrating. I applied for an internship

5 with the Advocates for Human Rights to determine whether I saw a future in immigration law. Tangible experience in the court has gone a long way to aid in this discernment. My summer at the Advocates was everything I desired in an internship. I directly interacted with clients, worked in a supportive and energetic office environment, and improved by ability to write and communicate in Spanish. I felt challenged by my work, both mentally and emotionally. The stories I heard in Minneapolis are forever intertwined with my own, and there is nothing more motivating.