Full Circle News

Tahirih is committed to local work in Anne Arundel County by supporting and helping our neighbors. Tahirih’s lawyers have specialized expertise in complicated, ever-changing areas of the law, and social workers provide culturally relevant case management services to ensure an immigrant survivor’s path to justice is not derailed by her social services needs.

The impact of Tahirih building a welcoming and supportive community in Anne Arundel shows up in the resilience and advocacy of Cate*, an immigrant survivor of trafficking. Tahirih helped Cate secure rent and food and benefits for trafficking survivors as well and reported the trafficking to federal authorities. With time and support from Tahirih Justice Center, Cate is learning to advocate for herself through the submission of a T Visa application. Her ability to see a fresh start is now a reality and finding welcoming allies in her Anne Arundel community has affirmed her autonomy and quality of life.

To learn more about Tahirih Justice Center and the life-changing support they offer, visit www.tahirih.org.

*Client name has been changed

Jessica’s willingness to share her skills, passions and interests is evident as she describes her desire for further involvement in AAWGT activities. She has enjoyed the education programs about community need and looks forward to being involved with the grant process next year. Jessica mentioned her support for more in-person meetings and feels those connections create a lot of energy. She is enthusiastic about ways to encourage diversity and suggests a “champion” for each zip code in the county to recruit and expand membership.

Jessica grew up in Laurel, MD, where her family had an art gallery and frame shop. She was part of the operation from an early age and gained the skills to manage interactions with customers. An early college English course included a visit to a rehabilitation center in Baltimore that made quite an impact. It gave her an increased understanding and compassion for others that she has built upon with a degree in international studies and throughout her career and in her community service.

Jessica and her husband, Michael, live in Arundel on the Bay with their daughters, Sadie (3-1/2) and Isla (1-1/2) and two dogs. They love being on the water and spending time with family close by in Washington and in Charleston, SC.

Over the past four-plus years, the RESG has engaged in a number of different activities to help members learn about the history and impact of racial inequities at the local and national levels. This tour of Highland Beach provided a rewarding educational experience focusing on how the Town of Highland Beach was founded and the tremendous efforts being made to continue to preserve its rich environmental and cultural heritage.

The group visited Twin Oaks, the former summer home of the Frederick Douglass family, now the Frederick Douglass Museum and Cultural Center. In words both spoken and unspoken, the group reflected on what this great man accomplished in American history. The group also explored the LEED Platinum Certified Town Hall of Highland Beach, meeting with Mayor William Sanders and his wife, Zora Lathan, to learn more about the town itself and how it earned that sustainability distinction.

The roster of those who settled in Highland Beach was a “who’s who” of 19th and early 20th century Black history, from poet Langston Hughes to Washington, D.C.’s Council member, Charlene Drew Jarvis. Sanders and Lathan shared some of their life stories as educated African Americans working to build a marriage, community, and institution against formidable odds and partnering with NGOs to preserve important history and create a “more equitable Anne Arundel County.”

As rich discussions continued among members during and after the tour, one noted “the continued stability of this community established in the 1800’s to be a haven for African Americans to enjoy the beauty of the Chesapeake Bay now being a community in the forefront of the environmental movement to preserve and protect the beauty and importance of our resources. A small community, when led by incredibly dedicated people, can accomplish amazing results.”