Cecilia's story 

Four years ago, Cecilia was close to losing everything. She fled to a domestic violence shelter with her daughter, Izabel, after her husband beat her during one of his frequent rampages. In retaliation, her husband, who holds a union job giving him access to free legal help, sought legal custody of Izabel, falsely claiming that Cecilia was mentally unstable.

Cecilia can’t read English, so she didn’t understand the documents she received from Family Court. And because she was undocumented, Cecilia’s husband knew she would be too scared to appear in court for fear of deportation. When she missed the hearing date, the judge issued a temporary order removing her daughter from Cecilia’s care and returning Izabel to her abusive father. Distraught, Cecilia reached out to the social worker at the shelter who immediately phoned inMotion.

It was then that Cecilia’s and Izabel’s lives began to change. After three years of hard-fought battles—in court and with immigration services—Cecilia is now a legal resident. Her divorce judgment includes an order of protection for her and safe visitation arrangements for Izabel. She earns enough from working in a local supermarket, together with child support, to provide a safe and nurturing home.

There are tens of thousands of mothers just like Cecilia in our City who need the critical legal services that inMotion offers. Please give today—as generously as you can.

Every dollar you give is leveraged five-fold

$5,000		Provides a trained attorney to secure permanent legal resident status for an abused immigrant woman, a process that typically takes at least 2 years.
$2,500		Recruits and trains 25 pro bono attorneys to represent clients in court on matrimonial, family and immigration law matters.
$1,000		Underwrites one monthly walk-in clinic where inMotion staff counsel 30–40 women on their legal rights and begin the process of finding volunteer lawyers to represent them.
$500		Gives 10 hours of vital interpretation services to non-English-speaking clients so they can communicate clearly with their inMotion attorneys about their needs and options.
$250		Supports telephone screening and intake services for 20 women desperate to find a free lawyer.
$100		Pays for a process server for 2 clients to deliver an order of protection against their batterers, allowing each woman to begin the process of leaving a dangerous relationship and starting a new life.