Winston Rallies to Help NYC Handle an Unprecedented Surge in Asylum Seekers

Winston & Strawn has responded to a call for help from NYC Mayor Eric Adams to staff a recently opened Asylum Application Help Center where thousands of asylum seekers are receiving assistance in completing and filing their asylum applications—bringing them one step closer to being eligible for work authorization.

Mayor Adams established the Asylum Help Center as part of the city’s emergency response to a humanitarian crisis caused by a surge of more than 70,000 migrants seeking sanctuary in New York City during the past year. The Asylum Application Help Center is located in the American Red Cross headquarters in midtown Manhattan and is staffed by attorneys from law firms across the city. Many of the migrants bussed to New York are nearing the one-year deadline to file an asylum application so this citywide pro bono response is vitally important to helping them access legal relief. 

Thank you to the following attorneys and summer associates who recently put in a 10-hour day assisting asylum seekers: Jonathan Birenbaum, Jeremy Chu, Quinlan Cummings, Tara Moss, Precious Nwankwo, Jennifer Olivestone, Yasaman Rahmani-Givi, Brittini Reaser, and Arthur Schoen.

In true Winston for Good form, the Winston team also donated books and toys to help occupy the countless children who accompany their parents to the center. Many of them spend up to 10 hours at the center while their parents wait for assistance and then complete their asylum applications. The firm is also donating the postage required to file the applications.

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