Congress has repeatedly passed bipartisan bills to reauthorize VAWA and strengthen protections for all groups, including battered immigrants, knowing that domestic violence cannot be full addressed if all victims are not safe and all perpetrators are not held accountable.

But today that could all change – unless you speak up to TELL YOUR REPRESENTATIVE TO VOTE NO ON HR 4970!

By as early as noon today, the House of Representatives will vote on a bill to reauthorize VAWA (HR 4970) that for the first time ever would actually ROLL BACK PROTECTIONS for immigrant women and children who are victims of domestic violence, sexual assault, child abuse/incest, and other violent crimes.

Tell your Representative to take a principled stand against HR 4970—this is not politics, this is about the lives of the most vulnerable among us who hang in the balance of today’s vote.

Last night, the House Rules Committee amended the bill to remove some provisions that posed especially serious threats, but the amended bill still blocks immigrant survivors’ access to safety and justice. HR 4970 would leave victims without meaningful access to protection; cause processing delays that will leave women longer in life-threatening danger; and undermine law enforcement efforts to investigate and prosecute violent crimes with immigrant victims’ help.

For more detailed information, read a backgrounder (PDF) prepared by the Immigration Committee to the National Task Force to End Sexual and Domestic Violence (on which Tahirih serves).

For more information on other ways in which HR 4970 leaves out protections for other vulnerable groups, read here.

PLEASE PICK UP THE PHONE NOW (right now) to tell your Representative, Speaker Boehner, and Majority Leader Cantor not to erode protections under the Violence Against Women Act for immigrant women.

Speaker John Boehner (R-OH-8):
202-225-6205

Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-VA-7):
202-225-2815

CLICK HERE and plug in your zip code to find the phone number for your Representative.

Tahirih would like to share with you the below urgent alert about the future of the Violence Against Women Act from the National Task Force to End Sexual and Domestic Violence Against Women. Please share with everyone you know who cares about ending domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking!

Happy early Mother’s Day to all of the wonderful women who have impacted us—mothers, grandmothers, caretakers, and mentors. We honor the mothers who have worked to make our lives and our futures the best they can be.

Here at the Tahirih Justice Center, Mother’s Day has a special meaning. Most of the courageous women we serve are mothers who decided to flee violence and seek justice as much for their children as for themselves. They come to Tahirih seeking help because they want a better life for their children.

This Mother’s Day, please honor the mother in your life with a gift to the Tahirih Justice Center or by sending her a copy of this message. We will use your donation to help another mother access justice and find safety for herself and her children.

With gratitude,

Layli Miller-Muro Executive Director

Anne Chandler Houston Director

Rep. Sandy Adams has just introduced a new bill in the House of Representatives to reauthorize the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) (HR 4970). HR 4970 puts steep new hurdles to eligibility in the path of immigrant survivors seeking protection under VAWA; radically changes the current application processes and in doing so, unwittingly increases batterers’ ability to threaten and intimidate their victims into silence; and lacks needed provisions to ensure full implementation and enforcement of the International Marriage Broker Regulation Act (IMBRA).

Contact your Representative TODAY to urge them to [1] reject HR 4970 and any other bill that guts protections for immigrant survivors, and [2] to ensure that the House VAWA bill includes all IMBRA-related provisions that passed in the Senate (S. 1925)! For more information on VAWA’s reauthorization and what’s at stake for the vulnerable immigrant women and children that Tahirih serves, contact Tahirih at policy@tahirih.org.

Read Tahirih’s press release applauding Senate passage of a positive bill to reauthorize VAWA, and for background on Tahirih’s leadership role on IMBRA.

Anne noted the remarkable success of Tahirih in developing a growing presence in Houston, including the donation over the past year of $700,000 worth of legal services, an area of great need. While immensely encouraging, Anne reminded the group of the staggering and continuing levels of violence directed against women and children throughout the world.

Kathleen Weir, attorney with Baker Botts, also spoke at the event about her experience partnering with Tahirih in the representation of a trafficking victim and an asylum applicant. The event was generously hosted by Advisory Council of Houston members Karen Otazo Hofmeister and Heather Beliveaux with food donated by Whole Foods.

Lindsay Harris, Equal Justice Works Fellow and Immigration Staff Attorney, began with an overview of Tahirih’s services and information on immigration relief for those facing gender-based violence. A “know your rights” component included a general overview of the US immigration system and pointers for immigrants reporting crimes in the United States. Lindsay stressed what individuals should expect in working with an immigration attorney in order to educate the community on how to spot and avoid ineffective attorneys, or “notarios” posing as attorneys. Two former Tahirih clients, Celine Mangeb and Therese Mikanda, spoke about their experiences with gender-based violence and successfully seeking relief through the Tahirih Justice Center.

It is important to reach out to vulnerable individuals in their own diverse communities to ensure that all women are equipped to seek protection, and enable Tahirih to provide multicultural services to women and children from all backgrounds. In the weeks following this outreach, Tahirih received numerous calls from individuals who attended the presentation seeking legal assistance and was able to provide help to all callers through direct representation and customized referrals.

We are grateful to AWEP volunteer and former Tahirih client, Therese Mikanda, for her assistance in organizing the event, and to St. Camilius Catholic Church for their hospitality in hosting the event and for helping us to reach this population.

Launched in 2010, Tahirih’s African Women’s Empowerment Project empowers African immigrant women and girls fleeing gender-based violence to realize their full legal rights in the United States through education, outreach, and direct representation in immigration proceedings.

In order to fully serve our French-speaking clients, Tahirih is in need of volunteers to translate French documents and provide in-person or phone interpretation for client meetings and immigration appointments. Please contact Kelsey@tahirih.org if you would like to volunteer your language skills!

The Women in the World Summit’s guest list boasted a who’s-who of women’s rights advocates. Attendees included current and former US Secretary of States Hillary Clinton and Madeleine Albright, Angelina Jolie, Meryl Streep, and Oprah, and star journalists including Barbara Walters, Christiane Amanpour, and Andrea Mitchell.

During the Summit, Executive Director Layli Miller-Muro accepted the DVF People’s Choice Award at the DVF Awards Ceremony at the United Nations, an event sponsored by designer and philanthropist Diane Von Furstenberg. The Award included a $50,000 grant for the work of the Tahirih Justice Center and provided an opportunity to share our work with a larger audience. Tahirih Board Member Debra Winger introduced Layli, who spoke about the plight of Tahirih’s clients. Backstage, Layli connected with the other honorees and guest presenters, but was most touched and star-struck by Oprah’s empathy. “She cupped my cheek with her hand and insisted, ‘I know you. Your client was on my show in 1997—thank you for all that you do.’ I was honored she remembered me and our work,” reports Layli.

Watch video from the DVF Awards, including Debra’s introduction and Layli’s speech

L to R: Sumanta Roy (Imkaan), Marai Larasi (Imkaan), Jeanne Smoot (Tahirih), Khatun Sapnara (UK attorney and expert), Ella Shenhav (Mintz Levin), Heather Heiman (Tahirih)

One of the main challenges identified in Tahirih’s 2011 Survey on Forced Marriage in the United States is that many service providers working with victims do not know how to identify or respond to vulnerable women and girls facing forced marriages. These types of outreach and training events are essential to supporting Tahirih’s mission of educating the community about the varied types of violence faced by women and children in immigrant communities in this country. Tahirih was thrilled to facilitate the transfer of knowledge between our colleagues in the United Kingdom and our partner organizations in the United States.

Participants who attended the two events represented direct service providers, personnel from various federal agencies (including the Department of State, Department of Homeland Security, and Department of Justice), the National Human Trafficking Hotline, the International Center for Missing and Exploited Children, and advocates and activists from around the country.

Trainings focused on the underlying reasons for forced marriages, risks and barriers young women and girls facing forced marriages, and practical tips and guidance for practitioners responding to forced marriage cases. Leading advocates from the United Kingdom shared their efforts to craft legal and policy solutions to address the issue of forced marriage, and how their experiences—including challenges and debates around a forced marriage-specific Protection Order and criminalization of forced marriage—can inform the United States’ approach to this problem.

Presenters included Priya Chopra, Director of Saheli; Sameem Ali, survivor of forced marriage and Manchester Councilmember; Marai Larasi, Director of Imkaan; Khatun Spanara, a London-based attorney and judge with extensive experience in forced marriage cases; and Heather Heiman, Senior Public Policy Attorney at Tahirih and co-author of Tahirih’s groundbreaking survey on Forced Marriage in Immigrant Communities in the United States. The event was generously hosted by the Washington, DC office of Mintz, Levin, Cohn, Glovsky, and Popeo PC.

The training and briefing were part of an ongoing series of webinars and trainings organized through Tahirih’s Forced Marriage Initiative. For information on future events, ongoing news, and policy developments on forced marriage in the United States, please sign up for Tahirih’s monthly Forced Marriage Newsletter.

The Tahirih Justice Center invites you to join us at our inaugural Houston Gala to celebrate three years of lifesaving legal services and high-impact public policy advocacy on behalf of women and children fleeing violence throughout greater Houston.

Since Tahirih opened our doors in Houston in 2009, through direct services and referrals, we have helped over 275 courageous immigrant women and children fleeing human rights abuses to achieve justice and rebuild their lives in safety. Every day, Tahirih sees clients who are survivors of horrific forms of violence, including rape, female genital mutilation, sexual assault, human trafficking, torture, “honor” crimes, and forced marriages.

6:30 pm Reception and Silent Auction
7:30 pm Seated Dinner

View Save the Date postcard

If you are unable to attend, but would still like to support the work of the
Tahirih Justice Center in Houston, please make an online gift now.

TOGETHER, WE WILL HONOR

The Honorable Marty and Parvin McVey
Christine LaFollette of Akin Gump
Charles Foster and Gordon Quan of Foster Quan

GALA COMMITTEE

SPONSORS

UNDERWRITER

The Honorable Marty and Parvin McVey

PATRON

Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP

SPONSOR

Argy Wiltse & Robinson PC
Elizabeth A. Dennis
Christi and Keith Guerrini
Jones Day
WR Starkey Mortgage, Wertz-Hardy Team

FRIEND

Seyfarth Shaw LLP

SUPPORTER

Latham & Watkins

Be part of the Inaugural Houston Gala

Through the generosity of a corporate sponsorship, you can support our efforts to protect immigrant women and girls fleeing violence. Please contact Justine Finn at justine@tahirih.org for more information about Corporate Sponsorship or with other questions about the Houston Inaugural Gala.

Sponsorship Materials
Gala 2012 Sponsorship Levels
Gala 2012 Sponsorship Pledge Form