The Fund for Immigration Legal Assistance, FILA of the First Unitarian Universalist Church of Columbus, supported by other local churches and community groups has launched a fundraising drive to provide legal support for immigrants in need.

“Since 2018, the First Unitarian Universalist Church of Columbus has been providing legal support for immigrants through a program called the Fund for Immigration Legal Assistance, or FILA. But, due to rising demand, FILA is nearly broke!” said Jan Phillips, FILA Committee member.

“In response, the church has launched a “Faithify” campaign that seeks, between now and December 3, to raise $50,000, which is estimated to be enough to support FILA for six months.”

Also supported by other local churches and community groups, FILA helps immigrants pay for crucial tasks such as filing for asylum, work permits or green cards.

However, due to the current administration’s crackdown on immigrants, FILA representatives say it has become increasingly difficult to keep up with requests for help.

All donations are tax-deductible to the extent allowed by law. Information on the campaign and testimonies on the need can be found at https://www.faithify.org/FILA-Fund-for-Immigration-Legal-Assistance. 

According to immigration attorney Nicholas Pasquarello, FILA’s rising costs are partly due to new or costlier fees for services that previously were less expensive or even free.

For example, applying for asylum used to be free but now costs $100, and applying for a work permit after seeking asylum used to be free but now costs $550. 

Pasquarello added that the cost of applying for a green card used to be $1,440 but has more than doubled to $2,940. 

First Unitarian Universalist member Jan Phillips said FILA serves residents of Central Ohio, with preference given to parents of minor children, young people and persecuted groups.

She cited a recent case involving a man seeking a green card for his mother so she could avoid deportation and receive the regular kidney dialysis on which her health depended. 

“She must have kidney dialysis in order to remain alive,” Phillips said.

“She would not survive a 30-hour flight to return to the country of her birth.”

Citing another case, Phillips said FILA funded a green card application for a mother with two young children.

“We believe that families must stay together,” she said. 

“Raising $50,000 through the ‘Faithify’ campaign is crucial to FILA’s ability to continue serving the immigrant community in Central Ohio,” Phillips said.

“We have applications today that we cannot act upon because we are lacking funds,” she said.

Support the New Americans magazine to continue to serve our community with precise news that affect the new American, immigrant and refugee community. https://paypal.com/donate/?hosted_button_id=8LHFS78NRNJJY&source=url