Mid Minnesota Legal Assistance

One Story

In June of 2008, a client said to Managing Attorney Peggy Russell, “There is a woman in the waiting room who has some issues. I found her crying at a bus stop. Maybe you could help her?” An hour later, Halima (not her real name) was in a taxi, on her way to Home Free, a battered women’s shelter.

“I knew nothing that day,” says Halima. “I was so afraid. I spoke no English, and I was afraid of American people. My ex-husband always said they would prey on me and hurt me. Now, Legal Aid is like my home. I have a good feeling when I walk by the building.”

Halima arrived in the United States in August of 2007, excited to join her new husband and continue her schooling. Her husband was a United States citizen who has lived here since childhood. Theirs was an arranged marriage, according to their culture. He courted Halima in Ethiopia and they married. He obtained a visa for her to join him in Minnesota, with a conditional resident status.

The situation deteriorated quickly. Halima suffered nine months of verbal and physical abuse, and total isolation in their basement apartment. Halima’s husband refused to give her money for a bus pass to go to school. She worked for a few weeks, but he made her stop. He forced her to have an abortion, left her alone for days with no food, and finally threw her out of the apartment with no resources, no friends, and no money.

Once Halima was settled at a shelter, she began working with Legal Aid right away and received help on a myriad of issues in the months to come. Betsy Parrell took her immigration case, and referred her to Central Minnesota Legal Services Family Law Attorney Christy Snow-Kaster for a divorce. Oromo interpreter Hashim Adam, a Legal Aid client himself and a work-study student from the University of Minnesota, provided Halima with a safe mode of reliable communication. Benefits attorney BJ Kuhn gave advice on questions of benefits, and Anne Quincy gave advice on temporary employment. Later, when Halima received notice that her ex-husband had illegally claimed non-existent children on their joint income tax the year before, she worked with tax attorney Sarah Bronson.

Throughout her months at the shelter, Halima went to weekly counseling. She attended school for eight hours or more every day for six months, determined to learn English as quickly as possible. She learned about immigration requirements, divorce proceedings, and tax responsibilities. Halima’s divorce was final in December of 2008.

Her immigration case was approved in January of 2010. Her tax case is nearly resolved, and she is preparing to apply for U.S. citizenship. Today, Halima has two jobs and is seeking a third. She supports herself and has a place to call home. Halima is standing on her own, and moving forward. Halima says, “I can take care of myself—I am a free woman. I am so grateful to everyone who donates to Legal Aid. You help those who have nothing. Please continue to give, and I will become one of you.”

Mid Minnesota Legal Assistance, Legal Aid, is the umbrella corporation for Legal Aid Society of Minneapolis (LASM), St. Cloud Area Legal Services (SCALS), Western Minnesota Legal Services (WMLS), and the Minnesota Disability Law Center (MDLC).

The problems of people who need but cannot afford legal help know no boundaries, and our clients are as likely to come from small, central Minnesota towns as from the city neighborhoods of Minneapolis. Legal Aid provides free civil legal services in 20 counties in Minnesota, and for people with disabilities throughout the state.

When you support Legal Aid with your gift, you are helping to:

• Prevent homelessness
• Keep children in school
• Secure resources for basic needs
• Improve substandard living conditions
• Provide equal opportunities for people with disabilities at home, at work and at school
• Protect consumers
• Aid victims of domestic violence/sexual assault to have safe lives
• Fight housing discrimination
• Provide help for immigrants seeking a better life

To learn more about Legal Aid and the people we serve, please go to www.mylegalaid.org