Africans In America, Inc.

Africans In America, Inc. (AIA) is proud of its key accomplishments in the year 2006, some of which are the following:

1) We continue to heighten community awareness

2) We continue to heighten institutions’ and agencies’ awareness

3) We continue to render direct services to the victims of horrendous abuse

4) Africans In America Foundation incorporated at Corporate Affairs Commission, Nigeria

Examples of direct services:

Victim #1: New York City, United States

67 years old female Nigerian victim of trafficking stranded in United States for 18 years granted T visa by the U.S. government

In July 2005, Mrs. Marthina Okere was brought to our office looking for services as a victim of human trafficking.

Mrs. Okeke, a homeless poor widow, a native of Arondizuogu in Imo State, Nigeria was approached by a wealthy and prominent Nigerian politician and community Chief in 1988 with offer of babysitting job (4 children) in New York City, United States of America for a fee of $300 every month. She was about 50 years old at that time.

Mrs. Marthina Okeke (aka, Mrs. Stella Okereke)

When she accepted, the Chief/politician took the un-educated widow to United States Consulate in Nigeria, filled the visa application but was denied. The Chief/politician prepared another set of documents and Nigerian passport with fictitious information and took the widow to United States government Embassy in another city in Nigeria. This time, her visa was approved.

Upon arrival in New York City, the madam of the house immediately applied for foster children and was approved. Victim was made to baby seat total of 8 children (5 biological + 3 foster children), 24 hours, cleaned inside and outside of a 4 bedroom mansion, cooked and cleaned for her traffickers and captors for 12 consecutive years and was not paid one red cent.

She was trapped with no help in sight. Her immigration visa expired and her captors never bothered to renew it. Instead, they used it to further intimidate her into compliance and to further silence her.

She left her captors in the year 2000 a helpless, hopeless, homeless and frustrated woman, amidst threats of deportation. She had no legal immigration status and lived in fear of immigration department.

After listening to her predicament and investigating her story, we accepted her case and began high-level advocacy on her behalf, for adjustment of her immigration status.

We secured attorneys willing to assist her pro bono on adjustment of her immigration status and unpaid wage matters.

In September 2006 the U. S. Department of Homeland Security approved/granted her T visa, regardless of fake names and documents.

T visa is a special visa created by United States Congress for individuals determined after diligent and thorough investigation to be victim of trafficking-in-person. Since the law known as Victim of Trafficking and Violence Protection Act (VTVPA) was passed in 2001, only very few individuals have been able to meet the very difficult requirements.

Good resolution of victim’s case will encourage others still in captive and in hiding to trust the government and come forward to get help.

Victim has authorized us to use her horrible experience to raise the awareness on the dangers of falling to the lure of jobs and better life promises by the new slave merchants and their associates.

Instead of paying this victim for her labor and services, the traffickers/captors and their associates continue to threaten and intimidate her and those assisting her.

We are really proud of our work on this case. This woman is very old, getting weaker, un-educated making communication with outside very difficult, and she does not know her way around New York City even though she has been here for over 18 years. Providing her effective intensive case management was very costly, however, we were able to do so through generous grants from New York Foundation and Union Square Award Program.

Victim #2: Lagos, Nigeria

Attempted murder of 23 years old girl at Lagos, Nigeria during nighttime

On September 21, 2006, a 23 years old girl Chinasa Okwumo sent us an email requesting assistance regarding heinous attempt at her life in the street of Lagos, Nigeria.

She stated that her assailant, an attorney with numerous police and other law enforcement connections stabbed her numerous times on the back of her head and other parts of her body and left her in the street during nighttime on May 15, 2006. The victim and her family were too terrified of attorney and his police connections to report the matter to the police.

Victim’s photos taken after the attack at hospital bed in Lagos, Nigeria.

She requested our assistance in her quest for justice.

After reviewing, investigating and confirming her story, we accepted her case and began high-level advocacy for justice.

Empowered by knowledge about her fundamental human rights and her civic duty to the society, the victim reported the attack to the police on September 27 2006. The incident is currently being investigated at Zone 2 Police Command Headquarters at Onikan, Lagos, Nigeria.

We have been monitoring the police investigation and it has been a very interesting case study.

The victim had also filed a civil suit at High Court of Lagos State for the stab wounds she inflicted on her by her attacker. Court record indicates that, in the suit No LD/1367/06 (High Court of Lagos State).

Victim has authorized us to use her horrible experience to raise the awareness and for other organizational purposes.

Monitoring this case in the Nigeria police and judiciary continues.

Major Barriers/Challenges

• Lack of adequate funding.

• Limitations and high threshold in the VTVPA.

• Hostility from the continental African immigrant community who mistakenly see gross abuse and exploitation of victims as part of the ‘African culture’.
  
  Large segment of the African community feel/argue that victims are properties of their traffickers, and therefore deserve whatever fate befall them. “Can poor victims talk of freedom and rights in Nigeria, and other African countries? Is it because we are in America?” are among the typical comments we get from some members of the community.

• Hostility, including threats and intimidations from human trafficking syndicates and associates in United States and Nigeria.