Announcing the Colorado Immigrant Justice Fund!
I'm writing my friends and family to ask for your partnership in helping us free immigrants from detention centers. But first, a bit of background . . .
Selky from Cameroon escapes a death sentence
For nearly three years, my friends and I have visited immigrants in a detention center near Denver, Colorado. Last year we met a pastor named Selky, who had fled civil war and genocide in his home country of Cameroon to seek asylum in the United States. Similar to most of the immigrants in US detention centers, Selky was on his own to navigate our complicated immigration system, and was consequently facing the likelihood of being deported back to Cameroon. Refusing to let that happen, my friend Jessie raised $6,000 to pay for an immigration attorney to take on Selky’s case. Thankfully, Selky won asylum last August, and now lives in Denver and has become a dear friend to many of us.
Our for-profit immigrant prison industry
Mostly under the radar, the United States has needlessly created a private prison industry that detains 30,000 - 50,000 immigrants at any given time. For many of these folks their only ‘crime’ is seeking to escape chaotic and life-threatening circumstances in their country of origin. With little or no resources, they are typically forced to navigate our complicated legal system on their own. Not surprisingly, only 3% - 5% of detained immigrants without attorneys win their cases, thereby avoiding deportation. With an attorney, they are up to 11 times more likely to win.
Announcing the Colorado Immigrant Justice Fund
Over the past couple years, we have visited and written to immigrants in a detention center near Denver, Colorado. During that time, we have raised money to help with legal fees for over 15 immigrants, many of whom have won their freedom as a result. Driven by the idea that if a lot of people give a little money each month, we can provide legal services for a growing number of immigrants, we have created the Colorado Immigrant Justice Fund, with two goals:
Provide a structure for donors to contribute funds toward immigrant legal fees
Provide volunteers an opportunity to request legal assistance for their friends in detention
Can you help?
Will you consider donating $5, $15, $30 or more per month? If 200 of us donate $30/month, we’ll reach our initial goal of $6,000/month, which would enable us to cover the legal costs for roughly 12 immigrants per year.
How to give
To learn more about the Colorado Immigrant Justice Fund - including how to donate - please visit our website at www.coloradoimmigrantjusticefund.org. If you have questions, please email or call me (303-944-7146).
Thank you for considering this opportunity!
Greg Mortimer
