Advocacy Programs

As an asylum seeker here in Maine, I am a believer in human rights for all people, and my efforts to work for human rights forced me to leave the only home I ever knew. I began to receive threats against my life when I was involved in the Global Youth Anticorruption Network as an … Read more

In 1994, civil war broke out in my homeland, Rwanda. Like many others, I was routinely tortured and feared for my safety and my life. My only option was to escape the political insecurity and ethnic conflict that consumed my home country. I came to Maine in 2007, with a bachelor’s degree and five years … Read more

AUGUSTA – Lawmakers on the Legislature’s Health and Human Services Committee listened to more than four hours of testimony Wednesday on a half dozen bills sponsored by state Sen. Eric Brakey, R-Auburn, aimed at making major changes to the state’s welfare and General Assistance programs. Among other things, Brakey’s bills would make those who have … Read more

… Antonie Bikamba, who fled political persecution and torture in his native Rwanda in 2007, said he relied on General Assistance for roughly a year until receiving a federal work permit. He ultimately went back to school, earned a master’s degree in conflict resolution and now works as a caseworker at Preble Street, a nonprofit … Read more

I came to the U.S. as an asylum seeker from Rwanda in May 2011, having fled my country because of persecution, torture and the fear of being assassinated. I left behind my wife and four children, my assets, my culture and my job. I had served as a humanitarian worker for 10 years before opening … Read more