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By Caroline Shimeall, Justice and Legal Thought College Park Scholar
Providing administrative, research, and educational support to the immigration legal services department has allowed me to advance justice in small ways and make meaningful connections with immigrants in my very own community.
This past semester working with FIRN has helped me learn more about working within the immigration non-profit space and increase my understanding of the hurdles faced by immigrants in the United States. Columbia, MD, where FIRN is located, is renowned for its diversity and inclusion. But even with FIRN to assist, the immigrant experience is never easy, and my internship with FIRN has made me realize how important immigrant services are and the extreme hardship faced by immigrants who live in areas without access to such services. Providing administrative, research, and educational support to the immigration legal services department has allowed me to advance justice in small ways and make meaningful connections with immigrants in my very own community. Specifically, working with the citizenship tutoring department of FIRN made me feel like I was making a real difference in someone’s life; there is no better feeling than someone telling you that you are a good teacher! Some of the clients spoke Spanish as their primary language and struggled with English, inspiring me to decide to relearn Spanish and potentially start learning other languages as well in the coming years. I have been blessed to work with people who are so passionate about what they do and their drive has encouraged me to pursue a career in which I have personal stake and interest in. Additionally, I am thrilled that I had the opportunity to give back to the place that raised me to be the open-minded person who I am today.
Hey Caroline! I was drawn to your project because I didn't know much about local assistance with immigrants. It is awesome you were able to make a difference in your own community! What was your favorite part of your internship?
Caroline,
As an immigrant myself, the title really drew me in. The part about helping clients with the citizenship test prep was really interesting as only a couple months ago my parents passed their citizenship teat as well. Do you know what type of work at school allowed you to gain a connection to the job place and secure the internship?
Hi Caroline!
I hope you are doing well! As a child of immigrants, this caught my eye. I remember helping my parents study for their citizenship tests and going to the courthouse with them on the day they received their citizenship! I know about the discrimination and obstacles immigrants faced, even though they are the foundation of this country, but I didn't realize that there were resources completely dedicated to helping them get through the citizenship process and advocating for them. How did you come across this internship and decide you wanted to try immigration law?
Hi, Caroline!
One thing that caught my attention was the dichotomy you posed between Howard County's status as one of the wealthiest counties in the US with the work you did there in immigration- helping the disadvantaged. Coming from a place of privilege, is there anything that you had to adjust yourself for in acknowledging that privilege?
Hey Caroline,
I was drawn to your poster because immigration is a very important issue and coming from a immigrant family this felt very personal to me. I learned about who FIRN was and what they do as an a non-profit organization to help immigrants like: preparing them for the citizenship test, tutoring, and sending resources for at-home preparation. My question whether FIRN has a certain age requirement to for them help the immigrants?