Erin Troy and Grace Hsieh
For nearly six years and on a daily basis, Martine* was terribly abused by her husband. During their life in Mozambique, Martine’s husband repeatedly hit her in the face and choked her. During one of her pregnancies, he regularly knocked her to the floor and stomped on her stomach. Martine’s husband was then transferred to the work as a diplomat in the United States. The abuse continued in the United States and Martine wanted to call the police, but she feared that with her husband’s power and influence as a diplomat, that the police would not help her and her husband would kill her. After a particularly brutal attack, when her husband repeatedly punched her face, splitting her lip and severely bruising her cheeks, Martine summoned the courage to work with police. Unfortunately, the police could not arrest her husband because of his diplomatic status. Fearing for her safety if she returned to Mozambique, Martine turned to Tahirih for help.
Erin first learned about the Tahirih Justice Center when she was in law school and met Layli Miller-Muro, Tahirih’s Executive Director, through a friend. She decided then that she wanted to get involved in Tahirih’s work.
Grace, who is interested in immigration and asylum and has a passion for women’s issues, 
heard about Tahirih through various friends and also through K&L Gates’ pro bono opportunity newsletter. She signed up and attended one of Tahirih’s training sessions.
Having discovered our joint interest in Tahirih, we decided to team up to take a case together. Both of us wanted to work with an individual whose issues were important to us. We hoped to impact an individual’s life, and, in this case, help a woman fleeing violence obtain the legal status she was entitled to.
Simply having the honor to serve Martine and her two beautiful boys was truly an amazing experience for us. After we filed Martine’s U visa application, we were waiting for months for a decision. Martine’s job at a hospital and residence in transitional housing was in jeopardy during this time and we advocated relentlessly with US Citizenship and Immigration Services to have her case adjudicated. When we received the news that her U visa had been approved, we were thrilled to convey the news to an overjoyed Martine.
This experience reminded us of why we went into the legal profession and renewed our passion to serve those in need. Both of us have taken away a better understanding of immigration law. Although this area of the law is very complicated, we were driven by the purpose underlying Martine’s case, so the drafting and revising did not feel like work. Both of us have a much deeper appreciation and compassion for the struggles facing immigrants in this country after working with Martine. We have gained a larger perspective on what is important in life and the benefits that we take for granted as citizens. We experienced such fulfillment from our work and relationship with Martine.
*Name has been changed to protect privacy.
Become A Pro Bono Advocate
We are always looking for attorneys willing to give their time and energy to help women and girls in need. Participating in our Pro Bono Attorney Network offers you an opportunity to transform the life of an immigrant woman or girl.
To read more visit the Pro Bono Attorney Network section of our website. If you have questions or are interested in providing pro bono help, please email legal@tahirih.org.
