MAI Refugee Assistance Program
All of us have dreams and goals in life but a stable place that we can call home is something we should not have to wish for. Unfortunately, refugees are denied this very basic need. Every year, millions of refugees are forced to leave their country either due to war, persecution or the violations of human rights occurring in their state. These victims of persecutions, injustice, and war move from their country in search of a safe place where they can reside with their families and many of them have resettled in Indiana.
A refugee, as defined by the United Nations Commissioner for Refugees, is a person who “owing to a well-founded fear of being persecuted for reasons of race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group, or political opinion, is outside the country of his nationality, and is unable to or, owing to such fear, is unwilling to avail himself of the protection of that country.” Refugees are people from all over the world with many different customs and traditions, yet all share the same desire to flourish and live a safe and happy life.
MAI's Refugee Assistance Program was established to serve the needs of refugees by providing free legal assistance to help them with the complicated process of adjusting their status. Our mission is to help them achieve a legal status in the United States so they can attain a better life for themselves and their families. We believe that everyone deserves place which they can call “home” and where they can live a peaceful harmonious life. Something, that many of us take for granted.
MAI’s Refugee Assistance Program has served refugees from all over the world, including Chinese, Burmese, Karenni, Chin, Iraqi and Palestinian Families. We have even served refugees who have been victims of Tiananmen Square protests of 1989. Currently MAI Refugee Program has helped close to 100 families and approximately 300 individual refugees in obtaining a legal status in the US. MAI clients include individuals and families (children, adults and elders). We’ve provided serves in Indianapolis, Fort Wayne, and South bend and continue to help three to four families weekly.
Our work is endless but we’ve been blessed with amazing partners like partners like Exodus, The Julian Center, American Red Cross, The Neighborhood Christian Legal Clinic, Catholic Charities, and The Immigrant Welcome Center. With the help of these organizations, MAI will continue and expand our work so that refugees can live a peaceful and fulfilling life.
