Celebrate the Season with Irish Theatre and Music - December 12 and 13
Join the IIIC and the Here Comes Everybody Players as we spotlight Irish culture and celebrate the holiday season. At 8:00 pm this Friday, Dec. 12 and Saturday, Dec. 13, 2014, the IIIC will host the Here Comes Everybody Players for two performances of Out of Bounds: An Evening of Irish Theatre and Music. Out of Bounds will delve into Irish history, exploring the internal struggles between the constraints of society and the desire to break free of those conventions.
The performances will feature theatrical pieces by Irish authors: A Christmas Dinner adapted from A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man, by James Joyce; and The Rising of the Moon, by Augusta Gregory, one of the founders of Dublin’s Abbey Theatre. We will also hear traditional Irish instrumental music performed by Tony Keegan, Lidia Chang, and Sean Connor, and songs sung by Mary Niederkorn.
The Here Comes Everybody Players is a Boston-based theater group focusing on dramatizing the work of James Joyce and other Irish authors. Over the past five years, the group has performed in several Boston-area venues including Boston College, Framingham State University and the Davis Square Theater and was recently sponsored by the Dublin’s James Joyce Centre to travel to Ireland for the 2014 Bloomsday Festival, celebrating Joyce’s work.
With a suggested donation of $25, proceeds from Out of Bounds will benefit IIIC’s Legal, Wellness, and Education services for immigrants from Ireland and around the world. Reception to follow performances. To reserve your seat today, visit iiicenter.org or contact Johanne Meleance at 617-542-7654 Ext. 13.
EXECUTIVE ACTION: STEER CLEAR OF INCOMPETENT/FRAUDULENT IMMIGRATION LAW ADVICE
Q: I plan to file an application for deferred action under the President’s new program. A friend of mine said I should go to somebody she knows, who supposedly would help me with all the paperwork for much less than an immigration lawyer would charge. Does this make sense?
A: No, it does not. Incompetence and fraud in the provision of assistance in immigration cases are a big problem, and you need to be on your guard against them.
It is critical to understand that as of now USCIS is NOT accepting applications for deferred action. The President’s order stated that USCIS won’t begin accepting deferred action applications for people who entered before age 16 for approximately 3 (about February 20) months and applications for parents of US citizens for approximately 6 months (about May 20). All potential applicants should avoid anyone offering to file an application now.
Often we at the Irish International Immigrant Center see people at our legal clinics who have paid non-lawyer so-called “experts” or “consultants” (including “Notarios,” who are not authorized to provide legal advice in the United States) to help them with all different types of immigration applications, only to receive incorrect advice. It also is common for people to search the Internet for assistance with their cases, only to receive outdated or false information. Often it is too late for us to help them, as they have missed crucial deadlines to file paperwork with the immigration authorities or to appeal adverse decisions. In addition, sometimes they never were eligible to receive a particular immigration benefit in the first place, and by relying on incompetent advice, they have rendered themselves vulnerable to removal from the US.
Outright fraudulent immigration assistance also is a major problem. US Immigration and Customs Enforcement and the US Justice Department frequently initiate prosecutions against “consultants,” “Notarios,” and even lawyers for filing immigration applications based on false information. The government regularly announces felony indictments in cases involving schemes to obtain immigration benefits fraudulently. Defendants convicted in such cases could be sentenced for up to five years in federal prison and large fines on each count. The immigrants involved are not going to receive the benefits they applied for; instead, they most likely will be subject to deportation if not criminal prosecution.
If you have any immigration law issue, including questions about deferred action, make sure that you consult with someone who is professionally qualified to help you. If you come to one of IIIC’s legal clinics, you will be able to have a free, confidential consultation about your situation with a fully qualified immigration lawyer. IIIC legal staff members are able to assist with the filing and processing of many types of applications.
If you need an immigration lawyer in another part of the country, you should make sure that he or she is a member of the professional association in this field, the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA). You can find an AILA member anywhere in the US by checking with www.ailalawyer.com and entering your location. You also can contact the state bar to determine whether a particular lawyer is in good standing.
It is extremely important to stop incompetent or dishonest people from preying on immigrants. In Massachusetts, you can file a complaint about such people with the Attorney General: Office of the Attorney General, Consumer Complaint and Information Section, One Ashburton Place, Boston, MA 02108-1698.
There is a form for such complaints; it may be obtained at http://www.mass.gov/Cago/docs/Consumer/consumercomplaintform.pdf, or by calling (617) 727-8400. Other states will have similar procedures; you can learn about them by searching the Internet for the sites of the various state Attorneys General.
Disclaimer: These articles are published to inform generally, not to advise in individual cases. US Citizenship and Immigration Services and the US Department of State frequently amend regulations and alter processing and filing procedures. For legal advice, seek the assistance of an IIIC immigration specialist or an immigration attorney.
Executive Action Information at the IIIC
Information Session – December 16 at 10:00am
The Irish International Immigrant Center (IIIC) will present its third information session to inform clients about President Obama’s Executive Action plan for immigration relief. The information session will be presented on Tuesday, December 16 at 10:00am at the Downtown Crossing offices of the IIIC. All are welcome to attend. Our Downtown Boston location is fully accessible by public transportation.
Information Session Now Online
The Irish International Immigrant Center (IIC) website now has a video presentation of a recently held information session to discuss President Obama’s Executive Action plan for immigration relief. The discussion is led by IIIC Managing Attorney, Jeannie Kain, and explains the Deferred Action Benefits of the plan, eligibility to apply, and the factors that should be considered before applying. To access the information session video, go to: www.iiicenter.org/executive-action
J-1 Work and Travel Interns Visit the Heights
American football has always gone hand in hand with Thanksgiving. Over the holiday weekend, a few of our J-1 Irish Work and Travel visa participants braved the cold and journeyed to Chestnut Hill, MA to watch the Boston College Eagles beat the Syracuse University Orangemen 28-7. The IIIC was pleased to give our participants an opportunity to see one of the most popular college football teams in Boston win their last game of the season. They thoroughly enjoyed the game and picked up another memory to take home with them.
Quote of the Week:
“A goose never voted for an early Christmas.” - Irish Saying
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