The Impact on RILA Clients
By Natalie Foote, RILA President/CEO
The majority of RILA clients are asylum-seekers, and they have fled from their home countries due to severe persecution and fear of losing their lives. When they arrive in the U.S., they often have very few resources or connections, having departed with hardly any possessions and as a last resort.
Asylum-seekers face many challenges as they settle into a new life. The first year is often the most difficult because everything is new and foreign. They do not speak English. Their living situation is often temporary and precarious. They must navigate enrolling their children in school and transportation. They are not able to legally work. The cultural learning curve is steep.
After the first year, things begin to get a little easier. Many asylum-seekers become eligible to legally work, and that enables them to find a sustainable place to live. They and their children become integrated into their communities, churches and schools. Many, especially the kids and teens, learn English. Even so, asylum-seekers are in a perpetual state of waiting and uncertainty.
The onset of the COVID-19 pandemic has brought new levels of stress and instability to the lives of RILA clients. Clients have reached out to RILA staff because they have not been able to access food and baby supplies. Some have lost their jobs and cannot afford April’s rent or food for their families. Loss of employment also means difficulty to pay for transportation for critical reasons, such as getting groceries or attending an essential meeting with RILA staff to review and sign documents.
Following the recent stay-at-home order, many RILA clients have expressed that they are afraid of leaving their homes because they fear being arrested or put in jail. This fear illustrates the deep-seated anxiety that asylum-seekers and immigrants live with every day. RILA is working hard to equip our clients with accurate information so they can take care of themselves and their families and understand the current policies and guidance on COVID-19.
RILA clients are incredibly brave and resilient! After all, they are survivors, and many traveled hundreds of miles by foot, bus and train to get here. Most RILA clients don’t ask our staff for anything outside of legal assistance. They are often overwhelmed by what RILA already does in representing them in their asylum cases. To reach out and ask RILA staff for more help indicates just how stressed, afraid and in need RILA clients are.
We want to do the best we can to support RILA clients in these extraordinary times. And, we want to pray for them, that the Lord would be a shield around them and lifts their heads high (Psalm 3:3).
If you’d like to support clients with financial assistance for transportation and other basic necessities, consider donating to RILA’s Benevolence Fund.