People who were deported are often discarded in the immigration policy debate. OIA’s #ReuniteUS advocacy program exists to change that.

In this post, Mustapha Komeh and Selly and Amadou Dia show was Ohio’s immigrant (and second-generation) leaders can do when they use their voices.

The goals of #ReuniteUS might not be possible soon. But we insist on changing U.S. immigration laws and policies to actually address human needs, social ties, family relationships, community benefits, and humanitarian protection, however long it takes.

Margarita Asicona Avilés, an Ixil woman from Homestead, Florida, has been held for days in a local jail — separated from her children — without an appropriate interpreter to explain what is happening, or help her communicate with attorneys and the court. She is facing criminal charges, and possibly deportation and the loss of custody of her children. The confusion and terror Ms. Asicona Avilés must feel, without being able to fully express herself, is unimaginable.

Abdoulaye Thiaw, a leader in OIA’s #ReuniteUS campaign to raise the visibility of people who were deported, issued a video invitation here. Although he can’t be there in person, he wants the entire community to attend and support this vital organization. This is the work we do at the Ohio Immigrant Alliance, and with your support, we can continue doing it. Thank you!

Ben & Jerry’s Foundation was the first funder to back the Ohio Immigrant Alliance’s ground-breaking #ReuniteUS campaign, which was launched after the first Trump administration. #ReuniteUS brings visibility to people who were deported, creating a platform for them to talk about their lives in the U.S. and why they want to come home. The people behind #ReuniteUS were the subject of a book, “Broken Hope: Deportation and the Road Home, which you can download for free here.

To commemorate 40 years of social justice funding, the Foundation is recognizing 40 organizations through a series of social media videos. Watch this video featuring OIA Executive Director Lynn Tramonte and some of the people involved in #ReuniteUS. Learn more about our campaign here.

OIA’s presentation for community groups