HRI Annual Report FY2016 - Page 1 - FOR TO BE FREE IS NOT MERELY TO CAST OFF ONE’S CHAINS, BUT TO LIVE IN A WAY THAT RESPECTS AND ENHANCES THE FREEDOM OF OTHERS. Nelson Mandela “ ” WHAT WE BELIEVE. OUR MISSION Human Rights Initiative of North Texas provides legal and support services to refugees and immigrants who have suffered human rights abuses; advocates for justice; and promotes international human rights. Our work with this immigrant population fills a crucial gap in services and offers survivors a way out of their traumatic and violent pasts. OUR VISION To see a world in which abuse, torture, assault, or other forms of violence are no longer used as tools to overpower and control any human being. OUR MODEL HumanRightsInitiativeisproudofourinnovative and efficient model to provide the maximum amount of services with the lowest cost to donors. Our legal services are always 100% free to the client. We are able to do this through a large, award-winning network of volunteer professionals who donate their time to help our cause. In turn, HRI offers free training and support to the professionals as they work on each legal case. This model allows us to assist over 450 clients each year. WHAT WE BELIEVE THE HRI TEAM THIS YEAR HUMAN RIGHTS INITIATIVE HIRED THREE NEW STAFF MEMBERS. WE ARE NOW A TEAM OF 14. THE HRI TEAM Top Rowleftto Right Christine Mansour,Appellate &AdvocacyDirector ElisandraDe LaCruz, ClientIntake Manager De’Jonnae Boyd, Marketing & SpecialEvents Coordinator MaryDurbin,Asylum ProgramAttorney Zainab Ellis, SocialServices Director Elisabeth Hagberg,Volunteer & Communications Coordinator CarolJablonski,VolunteerAttorney KavitaKhandekar, DeputyDirector Bottom Row Leftto Right MellisaWeaver,Women & Children’s ProgramAttorney BillHolston, Executive Director KristinaMorales, LegalAssistant& Case ManagementCoordinator Elean Martinez, ClientIntake Manager ZeylaGonzalez, Case ManagementCoordinator & LegalAssistant MarcelaEvans,Attorney, ImmigrantChildren’s Project MESSAGE FROM OUR BOARD CHAIR When I was ten years old, I came home from school to some upsetting news. It was the Friday before spring break and my parents informed my older sister and me that there would be no actual break. We were moving that very weekend and would be enrolled in a new school on Monday. Through the lens of a ten year old, this was the end of the world. There was no real chance to say goodbye to my friends and this was coupled with the stress of leaving behind my home and facing the frightening unknown of a new school. It’s amazing how much my perspective has changed, not only as I’ve aged, but as I witness true despair across the world. Just a few months ago the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees released a report stating that in the last year 12.4 million people were newly displaced due to conflict or persecution, resulting in an aggregate number of 65.3 million forcible displaced worldwide. To put those numbers into perspective, today DFW has a population just over 7 million and the entire stateofTexasishometoanestimated 27.5 million people. On a macro level, these numbers boggle the mind and on the micro level, it’s hard not to imagine the pain, fear, and helplessness that each of these individuals must have felt as they left behind all of the comforts of home, were separated from friends and family members, and arrived in a new place with completely foreign customs, laws, and often language. Sometimes when we are inundated with statistics, images, and sensationalizednewsstories,itisalltooeasytobecomedesensitized or disengaged. But, dear friends, I want to challenge each of you to remember a time in your life when you were “displaced”, even in a very minor way, and the huge impact it had on your life. Consider how these 65.3 million people must feel. And ask yourself what you can do about it. HRIisatinyorganizationthathashadahugeimpactonthiscommunity and on countless lives. Fewer than 15 paid staff, together with a fierce pro bono network, have facilitated all of the incredible work described in this Annual Report. Your monetary donation not only enables this work but it also sends a message to the community, to our state, to our country and to the world that you value the rights of every human being. This year more than ever, we appreciate your dedication to HRI and your generous support. Peace, Aubrey L. Meyers Board Chair OUR CLIENTS COME TO US FROM ALL OVER THE WORLD. OUR CLIENTS Evawas terrorized bythe gangs in her hometown. Fearing for Eva’s life, her familydecided to send her to the U.S.alone. Evais nowlivingwithaloving foster familyand is excelling in her studies. Dariuswas committed to fightingagainstthe injustice in his community. He quickly becamea targetfor the rebel militia.After being threatened, kidnapped,and harassed heand his familyfled for the U.S. Moovanwasarrestedand tortured bySri Lankan governmentofficials over the course ofayear for being Tamil,aminorityethnic group.After being released on bail, moovan fled the countryleaving behind his familywhowas forced to relocate due to the continued threats againstmoovan. Female GenitalMutilation is still widelypracticed in manyAfrican countries. Sybil,after marrying intoadifferenttribe, fled from her husband’s familyto protect her infantdaughter, Rosemary, from the practice. El Salvador Colombia Cameroon Sri Lanka OUR IMPACT DURING FISCAL YEAR 2016 HUMAN RIGHTS INITIATIVE FACILITATED A NUMBER OF OUTREACH PRESENTATIONS TO THE GENERAL PUBLIC. THESE PRESENTATIONS EDUCATED MORE THAN 2,700 PEOPLE THROUGHOUT THE DALLAS DFW AREA. OUR IMPACT
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