Asylum Support Fund provides legal support
to refugees seeking American citizenship.
OUR MISSION
Asylum Support Fund (ASF) provides grants to support asylum seekers during their legal journey to American citizenship.
We fund expert witnesses, translation and interpretation services, court fees, Green Card application fees, and annual fees that all asylum seekers are required to pay.
WHO WE HELP
Over the past six years, we have supported legal expenses for more than 400 asylum seekers from 42 countries across five continents. They have endured persecution, torture, and violence, and have come to the United States seeking refuge.
DIRECT SUPPORT TO ASYLUM SEEKERS
100% of contributions to ASF go directly to asylum legal support services. We are an entirely volunteer organization with no administrative overhead costs or paid staff.
All funds raised by ASF are used solely to assist asylum seekers.
IMMIGRANT STORIES
*All names have been altered for our clients' protection
An Interpreter for Raoul
Asylum seekers come to the United States from all over the globe, and many of them speak languages that are distinct to their region or ethnicity.
Raoul* is an asylum seeker from Central Africa whose parents were killed when he was a teenager. Without any family to help him, Raoul fled his home country and made stops across Africa before finally reaching the United States, where he was detained in ICE custody for several months as he awaited his asylum hearing.
Immigration attorneys could not have represented Raoul without access to a professional interpreter - a valuable service which a grant from the Asylum Support Fund made possible.
Green Cards for the Martinez family
Dr. Alejandro Martinez* -- shown here holding his family's brand new Green Cards -- is a refugee who fled Nicaragua after receiving death threats from the government because he provided medical treatment to anti-government protestors.
After unrelenting harassment from the government and several death threats, Dr. Martinez fled to the US with his wife and their 4-year-old son.
Asylum Support Fund paid for required medical exams for all three of them. They recently received their Green Cards and look forward to their new life in the U.S.!
U-visa for Caaliyah
Caaliyah* is a young woman from Central America who was a victim of brutal domestic violence. After reaching the United States, Caaliyah was arrested by ICE, separated from her young son Aadan*, and denied asylum in her hearing. Fortunately, the amazing work of PAIR attorneys helped Caaliyah secure a U-visa certification (a type of nonimmigrant-visa specifically reserved for victims of substantial abuse).
Thanks to this U-visa, Caaliyah was finally released from months in ICE detention and happily reunited with her son Aadan in Connecticut. She is now working multiple restaurant jobs trying to support the two of them.
But in order for Caaliyah and her son to stay in the United States, they needed to pay approximately $1,860 in fees for their two U-visas. Caaliyah did not have the funds to make this payment. A grant from Asylum Support Fund was able to give Caaliyah the help she urgently needed.
A Successful Appeal for Valentina
Valentina* came to the US from Central America when she was a teenager, fleeing home with her younger sister and traveling through horrific conditions to get to the US border to seek protection. They had been abandoned by their father as infants, and their mother was abusive.
Valentina and her sister arrived in the United States and were transferred to the care of their older sister who lived in Massachusetts. Valentina enrolled in a local high school (where she recently graduated!) while PAIR represented her and her sister in applications for "Special Immigrant Juvenile Status" (a type of visa which can lead to a green card).
For technical reasons, the USCIS rejected Valentina's SIJS application - but a grant from Asylum Support Fund allowed Valentina to appeal the decision. Her appeal and application were granted!
Asylum Support Fund is designed to give individuals like Valentina the second chances they have never received as well as the justice that they truly deserve. The payment of a small fee like this one can make a huge difference in the life of a young woman as she hopes to rebuild her life here and live in safety.
OUR BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Kathy Cunha
Kathy is a college success advisor for a nonprofit organization that supports first-generation college students, many of whom are from immigrant families.
Liz Keating
Liz is a retired nonprofit finance professor and executive. She presently serves on several boards and volunteers in a financial capacity for several nonprofits.
Irene Freidel
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Bob Cunha
Bob is Founding Attorney of Massachusetts Defender LLC, a law firm that focuses on criminal defense and civil rights litigation for poor and immigrant clients.
Green Card application fee $1500
Expert witness for asylum hearing $1000
Interpreter $750
Medical exam for Green Card $500
Court fees for unaccompanied child $250
Annual asylum fee $100
Custom donation
100% of your donation goes directly to support asylum cases.
Asylum Support Fund is a registered 501(c)(3) corporation. All donations are tax deductible.
EIN 84-3443808