Tahirih’s Tenth Anniversary Benefit a Moving and Joyful Event!

Senator Jim Webb, Congressman James Moran, and Tahirih Client Speaker provide touching remarks; Her Majesty Queen Noor of Jordan leads the distinguished Benefit Committee. The event is the most financially successful Benefit in Tahirih’s history, in large part due to Altria Group, Inc. and Shell Oil Company, who each sponsored at the highest level.

2007 TAHIRIH [...]

Tahirih Justice Center Ten Year Anniversary Report

The Tahirih Justice Center is proud to announce that our Ten Year Anniversary Report is now available online. This report describes Tahirih’s current programs and initiatives and describes where we plan to go from here. It includes an organizational timeline, program status, client stories, statistics on the violence facing our clients and a look into [...]

Welcoming Tahirih’s New Director of Legal Services

Colleen Renk Zengotitabengoa, Tahirih’s Director of Legal Services, has left Tahirih to accept a position at the Department of Homeland Security, Citizenship and Immigration Services, Office of Chief Counsel, Refugee and Asylum Law Division, where she will be working as an attorney advisor. In her five years at Tahirih, Colleen has had a remarkable impact [...]

Tahirih Receives Akin Gump “Legal Services Provider of the Year” Award

In a ceremony held June 27, 2007, Akin Gump named Tahirih its Legal Services Provider of the Year. Tahirih received $15,000 with the award. Akin Gump Attorney Amanda Johnson, who was featured in Tahirih’s April 2007 Newsletter for her remarkable service in representing a Tahirih client, won Akin Gump’s Pro Bono Attorney of the Year [...]

The Challenges of “Proving” Yourself in America

Open the wallet of the average American woman and you will find at least six forms of identification—a driver’s license, credit and insurance cards, various memberships—each of which has an extensive history behind it establishing her identity and eligibility for certain privileges. The average woman who seeks Tahirih’s help, however, comes to us with little [...]

Tahirih Launches Pro Bono Medical Network: MedStar Physician Partners Volunteer to Serve the Medical Needs of 100 Tahirih Clients a Year

You suffer abuse in your home country. You flee. Your life is in danger so you leave in a hurry. Your first priority is to seek refuge and legal protection. You find yourself in a new country. You do not have a home. You do not have money. You do not have friends and family [...]

Tahirih Successfully Defends the International Marriage Broker Regulation Act in Court

Tahirih recently won an important legal victory in its fight for the protection of foreign women who meet American men through international marriage brokers (IMBs) (commonly known as “mail-order bride” agencies). The US Federal District Court in Georgia, after a day-long hearing and a year of deliberation, issued a 40-page decision upholding the constitutionality of [...]

Honoring a Champion of Immigrant Women’s Rights – Jeredine Williams

On March 11, 2007, the Washington, DC area lost a dignified champion of immigrant and refugee rights with the passing of Jeredine Williams, an outspoken Sierra Leonean women’s activist and former diplomat. Ms. Williams was the founder of Migrant and Refugee Cultural Support (MIRECS), a Maryland-based organization dedicated to serving refugees in need. The Tahirih [...]

Tahirih’s Executive Director receives the Peter Cicchino Award for Outstanding Advocacy in the Public Interest

Layli Miller-Muro, Tahirih’s Executive Director, was awarded the Peter Cicchino Award for Outstanding Advocacy in the Public Interest for her efforts to advocate on behalf of immigrant women and girls fleeing gender-based violence. The Cicchino Award is given every year to American University, Washington College of Law students or alumni who have demonstrated outstanding devotion [...]

Tahirih Hires its First Director of Operations

Tahirih received generous funding from Altria Group, Inc. to enable it to hire a Director of Operations in April 2007, adding a critical management position that will be responsible for running Tahirih’s day-to-day operations. This addition will greatly strengthen institutional capacity as the impact and quality of Tahirih’s services continue to grow.