Everything JFS Was for Me, I Wanted to Become for Others

Read the story of a refugee from Cameroon, in her own words.

I am a single mother of two; a native and citizen of Cameroon. I am an artist by education, training, and profession. In Cameroon, there was a war called the Anglophone Crisis. The Anglophone Crisis in Cameroon started because people who speak English (called Anglophones) feel like they are not treated fairly by the government, which mostly speaks French. The Anglophone regions of Cameroon wanted to have more control over their schools, courts, and businesses, but the government didn’t listen. This led to protests, and some people became very upset, even fighting with the army. Many families have been hurt, and people have had to leave their homes to be safe. It’s a sad situation where people just want to be treated equally and have their voices heard.

An example of what I experienced was in early 2018 when I received fellow artists from Finland, a group of finish film makers who came to Cameroon to do the second part of their documentary on migrants in Europe. They had been trailing three Africans amongst which there was a Cameroonian. So they needed images of this family and daughter in Cameroon.

These Finish film makers were just looking at the town when a military officer approached them and threatened them, claiming they are terrorists. I rushed to the scene to explain and ascertain their claims. Upon arrival the military officer asked me to identify myself ,which I did with my national ID card. The officer upon discovering that I am an Anglophone Cameroonian threatened that he would take me to prison if I didn’t give him money. He then accused me of bringing in spies and terrorists from the USA to sponsor terrorism in Cameroon. I told him they are from Finland and that is why they speak English. He extorted money from me and ensued with a series of threats upon my life, both verbal and via text messages.

I tried filing a complaint at the military base, but that did not help. He said I was a useless Anglophone and that he would ensure that my name is on their wanted list. In the mean time, my brothers were hunted down, sometimes taken away and released after money was paid. A cousin of mine was in custody for a very long period of time. My father, may his soul rest in peace, (he died in 2021 running away from the war) was interrogated simply because he went to collect money my brother sent to him from the USA.

I came to the US to attend a program called the LCT LAB.. The plan was to go back home, but while I was here the crisis degenerated to something else, and Anglophones living in the French regions like myself began to be kidnapped and killed. And their bodies would be found the next day. Bearing in mind that I had just had a case with a French speaking Cameroonian at the Ministry of Defense/Military Base, my siblings had been attacked threatened, my family felt the military man would hunt me down and attack me given that he had uttered death threats. So, I submitted the case proofs, to immigration.

After following the appropriate protocol for immigration upon my arrival in the USA, I was referred by DHSS and became a client of JFS Delaware. Jenevive Newman, who is now my Director, was my case manager. I was a part of the Émigré Program.

At first, I was very apprehensive. I come from a place where organizations don’t quickly help like that. It took some time for me to come to terms with the fact that JFS was genuinely there to help me. And then I began to appreciate the resources, information, and most importantly, the guidance.

JFS gave me the listening ear I needed to vent out the pain of losing my father, cousins, and family relations. JFS gave me Moral Support, financial support, educational resources, and housing resources. I started in school and currently at Delaware State University studying Social Work.

I started as a client at JFS, but later on in 2022, I got recruited to work at JFS. And that day I took the decision, everything JFS was for me, I wanted to become for others, and even more. I moved from a facilitator to a case manager, and am now a Program Manager in charge of Programs in the RISE Department. Jenevive remembered that I had mentioned to her that I speak, read, and write French well. The group of people in question were all from French speaking countries. So, she got me trained in the curriculum and I began to do the trainings. This is one of the reasons we saw a huge increase in ÉMIGRÉ with the Haitian population because French is their second language and I have a basic comprehension of Haitian-Creole.

From the day I was a client until now, I have seen that JFS has had an array of individuals dedicated to becoming the bridge for immigrants and refugees through resettlement, adaptation, and integration.