Michelle Sicard | CIIP 2023 Blog Portfolio

Week 1

This first week working with PBRC, more than anything, taught me that there is a significant gap between the number of residents needing help in Baltimore City right now and the resources available to them. I felt this most during my in-person clinic days (Tuesdays and Wednesdays). These days were quite emotionally and physically draining. With only 4-5 individuals, including myself, working in the clinic at a time, I clearly noticed how limiting our assistance can be. Yes, we provide free, legal services and advice to clients who come in, but these clients often need guidance from an attorney to advance in each of their processes to gaining asylum, work permits, etc. This, of course, requires a steady income, which is often impossible for clients who are not legally allowed to work in the US. This problem is not only applicable to the systems in Baltimore City, but it is indeed a nationwide struggle for immigrants in the United States. The lack of interpretation services and language barriers also poses a significant delay in services. For example, this week only two of us on staff were qualified to interpret for the consults in the clinic. This places a strain on people we are able to see within the workday, as well as a lack of breaks for interpreters specifically. I was not expecting the kind of burnout that I experienced, specifically on day 2 of being in the clinic. This led to me wonder whether it is this type of burnout that strays potential interpreters away from the field, further deepening the lack of services available to immigrants who need someone to break down the legal processes and intricate jargon. It is this issue that motivates me to continue in my work and do everything in my power (no matter how small of an impact it may have on an individual) to help provide the services they need to survive in the US.

Week 2

Working within a hybrid environment, I have learned, is the type of employment I best thrive in. I’ve always suspected this about myself, but my role at PBRC has confirmed it. Although this week was entirely virtual, I normally work two days in the clinic downtown, and the rest of the week from home. I find the days at the in-person clinic to be, although the most emotionally fatiguing, the most rewarding. Meeting in person with the clients to provide interpretation services has been amazing. There is something about the in-person interaction that cannot be captured through phone calls/virtually, something that lies between interacting with another individual’s body language, facial expressions, etc. Something I have had to adjust to regarding this is learning to keep my distance as the client’s interpreter. I am normally a very social and approachable person. I find joy in connecting with others on an emotional level, understanding their stories, and becoming a source of reassurance. But as I quickly learned at the clinic, it is imperative as an interpreter to remain professional, interpret EVERYTHING that is said at the sessions (no matter how uncomfortable it may be), and support the attorney with only the information that he/she believes is relevant to building a case. This has been quite a challenge. Especially with my identity as a young, immigrant Latina, I feel like I owe something to other immigrants and support them on an emotional level as well, letting them know everything is going to be okay. This, however, does not fall in my realm of work, and can produce severe consequences in the results of each case. This comes with any type of legal work, but learning to know when to silence my feelings in the best interest of the client is something I anticipate will come with more time at the clinics. I hope to find this balance of empathy and distance sooner rather than later during my time at PBRC.

Week 4

Throughout this internship, my goals have remained fairly stable. Although I had high-arching goals to learn more about the ins and outs of immigration law, I feel I may have been a bit ambitious in my aspirations for this internship at PBRC. In the past few weeks, I have learned how truly complex and ambiguous immigration law can be. It would be nearly impossible to fully digest ALL of the information surrounding this type of work, especially since it operates on a case-by-case basis and with so many anomalies. This being said, my goals for the rest of the summer focus more on gaining confidence in my interpretation skills and on-the-fly thinking. I anticipate these to be strengthened particularly through my shifts at the clinic. In the first few clinics I worked at, I often experienced extreme anxiety and nerves during interpretation sessions. Little by little, I have worked at becoming more confident in my abilities and common terminology. I have also managed to be gentler on myself, and much of this comes with help from my supervisor. She does a great job at reassuring me throughout the day and has patience when I blank on words, etc. I do hope to learn more about all of the legal notations, shorthand, and basic terms within the field. I also am planning to take on a project of my own that could hopefully be used beyond my time as an intern at PBRC. My supervisor suggested a video explaining some sort of process (like the asylum application process) in Spanish, which could save lots of time at the clinics and expand our bandwidth of how many clients we are able to serve each day. I plan to develop a more comprehensive time management plan with my supervisor that not only allows me to work on day-to-day needs for PBRC but my own interests and projects as well.

Week 5

Something I have learned through this experience that I expect to use in the future is the power of listening. It is often very easy for me to rush into my tasks at work, school, etc. Especially in such fast-paced environments like Hopkins where I have become a part of, it is easy to feel educated enough to work quickly and efficiently. However, working at the immigration clinic has taught me to be patient in learning new skills while working with new populations. Although I do have experience in interacting with Latino populations, it is one thing to communicate as an individual and another as a worker. Again, taking the back seat as a new employee is not something I have had much experience in. I often prefer to take initiative and get things done! But this position has made me realize the importance of differentiating quantity from quality of work. It often takes time to gather information from clients, interpret at sessions, and enter data from the clinic into our database. I am so grateful for having learned these skills of patience and listening. I believe that they will better help me serve communities that are different than my own in addition to working as a member of a team. This also involves remaining humble in positions of imbalanced power dynamics. At first, I was quite self-conscious about this. I felt as though I had to actively remind myself of my role as the interpreter in order to keep the dynamic between my role and the client pretty stable. As time has gone on, however, I’ve mastered the art quite a bit. I better understand the boundaries of conversation between my client and me; for example, when it is acceptable to share information about personal lives, steer the conversation to where it needs to go and hear out any and all questions the client may have. I hope to carry these listening skills with me in future positions of employment!

Week 7

Intersectionality lies at the very center of our work at PBRC. As a Pro Bono organization, our primary mission is to help in the first steps of a client’s complicated immigration process. We as an organization of attorneys do not provide legal representation in court; rather, we are equipped with the resources and connections to help clients progress in their hearings, asylum cases, etc. Common organizations we often refer clients to include the Esperanza Center and Human Right First. Something that amazes me is the vast number of organizations that refer clients to us. PBRC has built up a strong rapport and connections to other non-profits in Baltimore so much so that a majority of our clients have been referred to us by other partners in the city. This level of intersectionality is necessary, and in my opinion, very well organized. As an intern, I am in constant communication with other immigrant advocates in leaders. Through this work, I have been so surprised to see how many people are offering immigration services in Baltimore!