Support Our Immigrant Neighbors

As more cities are impacted by sweeping deportation efforts, local organizations are building and strengthening accompaniment programs to support people interfacing with the immigration system who fear a lack of due process. Accompaniment involves supporting immigrants at hearings, ICE check-ins, and other legal appointments—providing companionship and bearing witness to individuals as they navigate systems and processes that are now even more complicated and frightening.   

HIAS is working with partners to map and elevate accompaniment programs in which the broader Jewish-American community is already engaged and to share knowledge and resources. We have seen firsthand the real human impact it can have when responding to the extrajudicial detention and deportation of our immigrant neighbors.   

Accompaniment Q&A:

• What is the role of the accompanier? 
  • Support with companionship, presence, and consistency.
  • Empower by affirming each person’s agency and dignity and offering guidance through the unknown.
  • Communicate clearly and compassionately before and after court.
  • Witness what happens in courtrooms that often goes unseen, and report back.
  • Comfort in moments of fear, confusion, or silence.
  • Create community through trust, relationship, and shared humanity. 

• How can I get involved?
  • Please fill out this form if you are interested in being notified as HIAS builds resources and opportunities about accompaniment. In particular, if you are currently actively doing accompaniment work, we will be launching a new Accompaniment “Community of Practice” — a password-protected site through which to connect and learn from other active accompaniment volunteers and access resources and a directory of accompaniment/court watch programs around the U.S. in which Jewish communities are engaged.

• Are you already doing accompaniment in your local community?
  • If your community is already involved in these efforts locally, please share with us in this survey on accompaniment. Your input will help us build and inform the network of Jewish communities involved.  

While the door to the U.S. has shut for almost all refugees, Afghan Special Immigrant Visa (SIV) holders who helped the U.S. mission in Afghanistan are still being granted entry to the country and are in need of communities to help them resettle. HIAS’ Welcome Circles program trains and equips congregations and community groups to provide this essential support. If you are interested in forming a Welcome Circle, which entails building a core group of 5-10 volunteers, fundraising, and completing an online application, email us to learn more at privatesponsorship@hias.org.

HIAS trains and certifies Welcome Circle groups with 5-10 volunteers to support the integration of families and individuals who are already in their communities and working with lawyers to obtain a safe and durable immigration status. Welcome Circles who are based in NY or DC can be matched with a family that is being represented by HIAS lawyers. Contact privatesponsorship@hias.org to learn more. If you are based outside these areas and are interested in participating in this program, please email us as well and we can discuss options for involvement. 

The HIAS Legal and Asylum Department offers opportunities for volunteers to support asylum seekers and other humanitarian migrants living in the NYC and DMV areas. Volunteers are matched with HIAS legal clients to provide English language instruction or support, job coaching, mentorship, assistance with community navigation, and interpretation/translation. Opportunities also exist to support asylum seekers indirectly through research projects, donation drives, and the development of resource guides.

HIAS’ Pro Bono & Partnerships team engages volunteer attorneys from across the United States to help refugees, asylum seekers, and other forcibly displaced people access vital immigration legal services. In addition to providing pro bono legal support to clients through our offices in the NYC and DC metropolitan areas, the Pro Bono & Partnerships team also works with organizations across the country, including HIAS’ Refugee Resettlement Partners, to identify and meet emerging needs.