Oasis Responds to COVID-19
During the unfolding of the COVID-19 crisis, the need for our nonprofit community is greater than ever. The entire Oasis team is committed to protecting our clients who rely on us for critical services.
With the wellbeing of our team in mind, Oasis staff have transitioned to working remotely for the foreseeable future. We have equipped our staff with the technology to continue delivering essential immigration services from their homes. Luckily, last year, we prioritized digital accessibility for our staff and worked with an IT specialist to maximize the security of our clients’ personal data. This investment preemptively laid the groundwork that facilitated a smooth transition to remote work.
Already among the most vulnerable and marginalized, undocumented LGBTQ+ asylum-seekers are now disproportionately impacted by COVID-19 – Since the pandemic, every week, more and more of our clients are laid off or have their work hours reduced. Many who live paycheck to paycheck work in industries that have been especially affected.
Many LGBTQ+ immigrants are without stable housing and others suffer underlying health issues, such as living with HIV or being immunocompromised in other ways. Just last week, we learned of our first client who has tested positive for COVID-19.
Continued provision of direct immigration services and holistic case management to the community is crucial. We have quickly adjusted to crisis-mandated changes in immigration practices to ensure LGBTQ+ immigrants are protected. For example, immigration applications facing critical deadlines are being submitted. We are also working with a renewed urgency to relieve barriers to medical and emergency services and are prioritizing work permits and case management services. By doing these things, we are supporting our clients in seeking and maintaining legal work, filing for worker protections and unemployment benefits, exercising their right to protection from eviction, and accessing medical services.
Oasis is actively waiving existing clients’ payments for our services because we believe that no one should have to choose between paying rent and continuing their immigration application.
We have also been disseminating information almost daily through social media and through emails and texts, and are committed to responding to our clients’ concerns with accurate and up-to-date information.
With your continued support, our team will continue to stand with the LGBTQ+ immigrant community and ensure they have the resources necessary to withstand the indefinite effects and uncertainty of COVID-19.
How You Can Help
To qualify for asylum, most Oasis clients must submit a psychological evaluation from a licensed professional along with their asylum application. While Oasis can waive our own fees for those impacted by COVID-19, clients must still pay between $350 and $550 for a psychological evaluation. Without this evaluation, we cannot file many of our clients’ asylum cases, and due to strict filing deadlines, a person may lose their chance at winning asylum forever.
As an emergency stopgap, we have set up a fund to pay for the psychological evaluations of clients who are unemployed due to COVID-19, so that no one loses their chance at securing safety. Please help us by making a donation today.
2024 COVID-19 Update
Due to shelter-in-place mandates, some clients were forced to remain in abusive relationships or with homophobic and transphobic family members who are not accepting of their identities. Unfortunately, many LGBTQ+-centered spaces also went into lockdown due to the pandemic and the social spaces where clients previously found community and acceptance became nonexistent.
All of these factors led to increased mental-health deterioration for the immigrant and LGBTQ+ communities, and especially for our clients who face compounded obstacles at the intersection of their identities as queer and trans immigrants.
Our social services team was and continues to be instrumental in providing resources and referrals to our clients during difficult times.
Accessing our services at the onset of COVID-19 was challenging for our clients and staff alike as we figured out the best ways to adapt and accommodate the needs of our clients and secure the safety of our staff.
Over the past year, clients have begun expressing a greater desire for in-person intakes and meetings with legal advocates. As victims of past persecution and a history of distrust for authorities, it is important to build strong rapport and genuine connections with our clients. In response, Oasis has made our office more accessible by creating a waiting room, having air filters in all offices and public spaces, offering masks to those who come without them, and minimizing how many walk-in appointments we take in a single day, while also balancing staff needs.
Our clients remain disproportionately affected by the ongoing effects of COVID-19.
Published April 15, 2020