Speaker 1: Please be advised that U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services is closed for all in-person interviews and services until at least June 3, 2020. For updated information, please visit the website below. Please be advised that all immigration court hearings for immigrants who are not detained are canceled through at least June 26, 2020. For updated information, please visit the website below. This presentation is part of a series of video trainings put together by Urban Justice Center's Domestic Violence Project. This training is on asylum. This training is designed to provide general information about asylum. It is not intended to provide legal advice or guidance on any particular case or matter. When in doubt, consult a lawyer. Asylum is a legal process that allows someone who feels their life is in danger in their home country to seek refuge in safer countries. Under U.S. and international law, someone who reaches any U.S. border may apply for asylum. A person may be granted asylum if she meets the statutory definition of a refugee. Who is a refugee? A refugee is someone who is outside their country of nationality or habitual residence and is unable or unwilling to return to and is unable or unwilling to avail themselves of the protection of that country because of persecution or a well-founded fear of persecution on account of one of the five protected grounds, which are race, religion, nationality, membership in a particular social group, or political opinion. What is persecution? Persecution is mistreatment that is inflicted either directly by the government or by individuals whom the government cannot or will not control. Although there is no exact definition provided for persecution in the law, it is generally described as more serious than simple harassment or discrimination. Nevertheless, many kinds of mistreatment might rise to the level of persecution, especially if the abuse was frequent over a long period of time. Persecution can be past persecution or a well-founded fear of future persecution. This means that a person need not have actually suffered past persecution to qualify for asylum. A well-founded fear is also sufficient to qualify for asylum. Individuals with a well-founded fear must prove two components. The fear is genuine and the fear is objectively reasonable. At all times, the asylum seeker bears the burden to prove past persecution or a well-founded fear of future persecution. Once again, persecution or mistreatment must be because of one of the five protected grounds, race, religion, nationality, membership in a particular social group, or political opinion. An asylum seeker may have suffered persecution based on multiple different protected grounds and it is important to highlight all of the protected grounds. Applying for Asylum An individual generally must apply for asylum within one year of arriving in the United States. However, in limited circumstances, individuals can be granted asylum even after this deadline passes. There are two ways in which a person may apply for asylum in the United States, the affirmative process and the defensive process. Affirmative Process A person who is not in removal proceedings may affirmatively apply for asylum through U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. After interview with an asylum officer, the asylum seeker may be granted or denied asylum. If the asylum officer does not grant the asylum application and the applicant does not have lawful immigration status, he or she is referred to the immigration court for removal proceedings, where he or she may renew their request for asylum through the defensive process and appear before an immigration judge. Defensive Process A person who is in removal proceedings may apply for asylum defensively by filing the application with an immigration judge. In other words, asylum is applied for as a defense against removal from the United States. Once again, the asylum seeker has the burden of proving that he or she meets the definition of a refugee. Asylum seekers often provide substantial evidence throughout the affirmative and defensive process demonstrating either past persecution or that they have a well-founded fear of future persecution in their home country. However, the individual's own testimony is usually critical to his or her asylum determination. Benefits of Asylum Once a person is granted asylum, they are referred to as an asylee. An asylee is protected from being returned to his or her home country, is authorized to work in the United States, may apply for a social security card, may request permission to travel overseas, and can petition to bring family members to the United States. After one year, an asylee may apply for lawful permanent residence status, also known as a green card. Once the individual becomes a permanent resident, he or she must wait for four years to apply for citizenship. Thank you. Contact us at our website, dvp.urbanjustice.org. Our email, dvp.urbanjustice.org. Our intake line number is 833-321-4387, open Monday to Friday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.