Imagine walking more than 60 miles through a deadly jungle, your children by your side, clinging to the faint hope of safety and a better future.
For Yenifer and her family, this was not just a nightmare — it was their reality. Their harrowing nine-year journey from Venezuela took them through seven countries, including the treacherous Darién Gap between Panama and Colombia, before they finally arrived in Chicago.
Today, her children are thriving at our Passages Charter School, a school on the city’s North Side. Despite the uncertainty over President-elect Donald Trump’s plans for mass deportations, Yenifer remains hopeful for her family’s future.
“We love the school and the teachers and don’t want to interrupt our kids’ education,” she told us recently. “I know in my heart this is the right path for my family.”
These are anxious times for many of the families we serve at Trellus, a Chicago nonprofit that’s grown to serve immigrants, refugees and asylum-seekers from all over the world.
We cannot fully know yet the impact of the incoming Trump administration’s policies and executive orders on our community. But we know this much: The vibrant ecosystem of nonprofits serving Chicago’s new arrivals will be tested in new and different ways.
Now more than ever, we’re calling for the compassion and support of refugees and asylum-seekers in Chicago.
The decision to leave one’s home, family, and everything familiar is never made lightly. Those who do so face unimaginable hardship — fleeing violence, persecution or certain death.
Consider the story of Lailoma, a young Afghan woman who dared to dream of a future beyond the oppressive grasp of the Taliban.
“When the Taliban took power, they did not allow Afghan girls to go to school, to study, or even to speak in public,” she told us. “It was incredibly hard to decide whether to leave my family and homeland for a better future or stay and suffocate in the prison the Taliban would create for me.”
Last month, Lailoma graduated from our Google IT program, which equips young people with the skills to pursue careers in technology.
These are not isolated stories. Refugees and asylees are among the strongest and most resilient people in the world. They are mothers, fathers, sons and daughters. They are like us in so many ways, yet they have endured trials most of us cannot imagine. And we are lucky to have them. They enrich Chicago’s culture, strengthen its economy and brighten its future.
As we near Inauguration Day, our newest neighbors will need the support and compassion of longtime Chicagoans. The Trump administration’s fearmongering around deportations, bureaucratic hurdles, and restrictive policies disrupt lives and tear families apart. While Yenifer remains hopeful for her family’s future in Chicago, we’ve heard from other parents that they are in constant fear of being detained and separated from their children, even as they work hard to build a new life.
The human cost of turning away from those in need is staggering. It is not only a moral failure but also a missed opportunity. Refugees and asylees bring with them culture, diversity and potential that enrich our communities and fuel our shared growth.
Supporting refugees and asylum-seekers is a test of our collective humanity as a society. Ultimately, their hopes and struggles reflect our own. In this moment, we are called to say: “You matter. You are welcome here.”
Last month, Trump’s border czar Tom Homan declared that Chicago would be “ground zero for the biggest deportation operation this country has ever seen.”
We’ll see whether that comes to pass. Regardless, we are committed to supporting our families in the only way we know how— by keeping our doors open to all who need us.
Let us not forget that each of us shares a history of migration, of ancestors who crossed borders in search of better lives. Let Yenifer and Lailoma remind us of the resilience and hope that lie at the heart of those journeys. Let their courage inspire us to rise to the occasion and meet their determination with a helping hand. We owe it to them, to ourselves, and to the future we hope to build together.
Editor’s note: The Tribune has agreed to publish only the first names in this piece for the security of these individuals.
Rebecca Creighton and Chris Shue are co-CEOs of Trellus.
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