Immigrant Conversations

Migrated despite her will, slept on cardboard boxes, and left her house at the age of 15 because she couldn’t tolerate her abusive father anymore. My guest this week is Dr.Bahareh Sahebi who talks about her migration journey and the different elements that make leaving abusive relationships difficult especially for immigrants. She also educates us on the steps to take to prepare.

Dr. Bahareh Sahebi Bio:

https://www.family-institute.org/therapists-locations/staff/bahareh-sahebi

Doctor of Psychology in Clinical Psychology with specialization in the treatment of trauma

Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist in the state of Illinois and a practicing clinician at The Family Institute

· Assistant Program Director, Master of Science in Marriage and Family Therapy, in the Center for Applied Psychological and Family Studies at Northwestern University

· Clinical Assistant Professor, Department of Psychology, Northwestern University

Clinical Fellow of the American Association of Marriage and Family Therapy

· Teaching Faculty in the School of Education and Social Policy at Northwestern University

· Clinical Supervisor of the Marriage and Family Therapy graduate program at the Bette D. Harris Family & Child Clinic

Dr. Sahebi is a researcher, educator & consultant of the ParentLENS.com project that she co-developed with one of the most prominent figures in the profession of Marriage and Family Therapy, Dr. Mudita Rastogi

She is also the recipient of Dr. Christine Bard, Compassion and Skill in Rehabilitation Practice Award; nominated by the Illinois Chapter of the International Association of Rehabilitation Professionals

In the more recent 2 years:

Associate Editor for the Encyclopedia of Couple and Family Therapy

Co-author of the Integrative Systemic Therapy (IST) Handbook currently in press

Published the preliminary article on telehealth clinical supervision practices and clinical supervision during a global pandemic published in Family Process

Sahebi B. (2020). Clinical supervision of couple and family therapy during COVID-19. Family Process, Vol. 59(3) DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/famp.12591

Co-authored series of 4 published articles for caregivers, teachers, and psychotherapists related to E-learning for children during the global pandemic

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You can connect with Mehran: [email protected]

Resources for domestic abuse: https://www.womenslaw.org/about-abuse/abuse-specific-communities/abuse-immigrant-communities & https://www.thehotline.org/ & https://www.futureswithoutviolence.org/userfiles/file/Children_and_Families/Immigrant.pdf

Setting goals can be hard for us immigrants. Most of us haven't learned how to set them right and how to achieve them. That's why in this episode, Mehran, Empowering conversationZ host talks about a personal experience that made her aware of setting balanced goals in life. and the culprit behind her failure in reaching her 40th birthday goals.

In this episode, you will hear about the importance of goal setting.

several techniques in setting goals.

achieving them while living a balanced life.

As a career coach, she helps her clients set goals and reach them feeling supported and in this special episode, she is sharing the many techniques that she uses in her practice.

my email: [email protected]

Read more about Mehran: https://www.mehrans.com/about

subscribe to our newsletter here to hear about her group sessions: https://www.mehrans.com/empowering-conversationz

Goal setting by Jim Rohn: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aOOYeMDLgC0

Explore coaching with Mehran https://www.mehrans.com/book-online

Immigrants rarely are aware of their rights and the resources available to them. Most often they choose silence for cultural and personal reasons feeling unsatisfied at work. In this episode Sarah Calfee, an experienced Human Resource professional with over 20years of experience, educates our listeners on the following topics:

-When to seek HR help and when to start searching for your next job

-How can immigrants discuss difficult conversations with HR

-Different strategies to speak up

You can connect with Sarah via https://www.calfeehrconsulting.com/

Her Bio: Sarah Calfee, Principal Consultant, Calfee HR Consulting

Sarah is an HR Consultant with more than 20 years of experience in Human Resources. Over the years, she has earned an MBA, the SHRM Senior Certified Professional certification, and a diversity trainer certificate.

Since 2009, Sarah has maintained a passion and focus on developing increased awareness in diversity, equity, and inclusion matters. She was the 2020 Diversity Committee Chair for the San Diego Society of Human Resource Management, working with HR professionals on how to address DEI concerns in their organizations and communities. Most recently, Sarah has been designated President-Elect for the 2022 San Diego SHRM board of directors.

Using her education and experience, Sarah understands business objectives and how they tie to people. She helps organizations and individuals work through sensitive scenarios to anticipate the people's impact and to translate communications so different parties hear the right message. Her goal through this approach is to help others develop higher emotional intelligence, successfully navigate sensitive topics, and foster an intentional culture.

In addition to her consulting work, Sarah is a speaker for organizations about a variety of HR and DEI topics, volunteers as an HR Guru for Hera Hub, and is a part-time nanny for her infant grandson.

👉Subscribe to Empowering conversationZ podcast and hear immigrant stories and issues important to immigrants on your favorite app by searching Empowering conversationZ or through our page https://www.mehrans.com/empowering-conversationz

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Recommended episodes:

-EZ16 Impacted by undocumented contract https://www.mehrans.com/empowering-conversationz/episode/c0b492e1/ez16-impacted-by-undocumented-contract

-EZ33 Immigrants guide to Racist comments https://www.mehrans.com/empowering-conversationz/episode/8e97f693/ez33-immigrants-guide-to-racist-comments

-EZ24 Immigrants and "Bad Bosses" https://www.mehrans.com/empowering-conversationz/episode/c329a6d8/ez24-immigrants-and-bad-bosses

Evelyn Perez migrated to the United States from Guatemala at a very young age after crossing the Rio Grande River. In this episode, she talks about her immigration journey, the nights she locked the doors to stay safe while her mom worked, the days she had to try to fit in and many incidents that made her feel like an outcast both as a child and as an adult.

One of the main parts of the conversation was her divorce process. How her immigrant family finally supported her decision despite their cultural norms, alcoholism, abuse, and the process that enabled her to stand up on her feet while supporting her boys as a single mother.

Her Bio: Evelyn Perez is a leader who is passionate about advocating, equipping, and raising young Latina women leaders. She is originally from Guatemala but has called the Bay Area home since immigrating at the age of 2. She has served her community throughout several stages of life. Perez currently serves as director of ministries to an organization in California. In 2018 she decided to pursue her calling to ministry and is now attending North Park Theological Seminary. Perez experiences deep joy when hanging at the skatepark, with her two sons Andres and Fernando or simply taking a day to enjoy all nature has to offer.

Subscribe to Empowering conversationZ podcast and hear immigrant stories and issues important to immigrants on your favorite app by searching Empowering conversationZ or through our page https://www.mehrans.com/empowering-conversationz

Immigrant platform story: https://www.mehrans.com/empowering-conversationz/episode/9101fbc6/ez38-educational-platform-i-build-during-pandemic

Website for becoming a teacher: https://khoshhaulam.com/

EZ25 episode: https://www.mehrans.com/empowering-conversationz/episode/c1b79b7b/ez25-refuge-for-rape-victim

In this special episode, Mehran talks about her newfound cause and how the pandemic helped her find it & bring it to life.

-The struggles of building an educational platform

-How can the audience support her cause

-How immigrant educators can benefit from this platform

If you have any questions or suggestions send her an email [email protected]

Website of her platform: https://khoshhaulam.com/

Join their newsletter to learn more and receive coupons.

Mehran, your host, has the honor to share with you another immigrant story. My guest today is Ilya Somin who migrated as a young child with his parents from Russia. In this episode, as always we will talk a little about Ilya's migration journey, what foot voting means, and how as an immigrant you can get a better education for your child or have a greater impact on your community. in the end, we will hear about Ilya’s opinion on Afghanistan and what he is doing to help Afghan refugees.

Link to Khoshhaulam: https://khoshhaulam.com/

Link to vote for Mehran until October 8th: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/BRAVARisingStar2021

Link to Ilya's Book: https://www.amazon.com/Free-Move-Migration-Political-Freedom/dp/0190054581

Ilya's Memoire: https://www.law.gmu.edu/assets/files/faculty/Somin_HIASMemoir.pdf

Ilya's Biography:

ILYA SOMIN is Professor of Law at George Mason University. His research focuses on constitutional law, property law, democratic theory, federalism, and migration rights. He is the author of Free to Move: Foot Voting, Migration, and Political Freedom (Oxford University Press, 2020), Democracy and Political Ignorance: Why Smaller Government is Smarter (Stanford University Press, revised and expanded second edition, 2016), and The Grasping Hand: Kelo v. City of New London and the Limits of Eminent Domain (University of Chicago Press, 2015, rev. paperback ed., 2016), coauthor of A Conspiracy Against Obamacare: The Volokh Conspiracy and the Health Care Case (Palgrave Macmillan, 2013), and co-editor of Eminent Domain: A Comparative Perspective (Cambridge University Press, 2017). Democracy and Political Ignorance has been translated into Italian and Japanese.

Somin’s work has appeared in numerous scholarly journals, including the Yale Law Journal, Stanford Law Review, Northwestern University Law Review, Georgetown Law Journal, Critical Review, and others. Somin has also published articles in a variety of popular press outlets, including the Washington Post, Wall Street Journal, Los Angeles Times, the New York Times Room for Debate website, CNN, The Atlantic, USA Today, US News and World Report, Newark Star Ledger, South China Morning Post, Legal Times, National Law Journal and Reason. He has been quoted or interviewed by the New York Times, Washington Post, Wall Street Journal, Time, Newsweek, The Economist, the Christian Science Monitor, The Guardian, the Associated Press, CBS, MSNBC, NPR, BBC, Reuters, the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, the Australian Broadcasting Corporation, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, Al Jazeera, and the Voice of America, among other media.

Somin’s writings have been cited in decisions by the United States Supreme Court, multiple state supreme courts and lower federal courts, and the Supreme Court of Israel. He has testified on the use of drones for targeted killing in the War on Terror before the US Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on the Constitution, Civil Rights, and Human Rights. In 2009, he testified on property rights issues at the United States Senate Judiciary Committee confirmation hearings for Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor. Somin writes regularly for the popular Volokh Conspiracy law and politics blog, now affiliated with Reason magazine (previously affiliated with the Washington Post from 2014 to 2017). From 2006 to 2013, he served as Co-Editor of the Supreme Court Economic Review, one of the country’s top-rated law and economics journals.

800,000 people lose their lives to suicide every year.

Aside from its statistics and its increasing rate, suicide is personal for Mehran. In this episode, Mehran, the podcast host talks about her personal encounter with suicide, the pain of losing someone to suicide, and the 7 lessons she learned from the journey.

Below are the promised links:

https://www.psychiatry.org/patients-families/suicide-prevention

https://www.health.harvard.edu/mind-and-mood/what-causes-depression

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-immigrants-more-depressed-than-those/immigrants-more-depressed-than-those-who-stay-idUSTRE7335VJ20110404

https://www.today.com/specials/suicide-attempt-survivors/

https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2020/01/15/2019-28429/implementation-of-the-national-suicide-hotline-improvement-act-of-2018

Suicide hotline: 800-273-8255

Text HOME to 741741 for free, 24/7 crisis

Books: It's OK That You're Not OK: Meeting Grief and Loss in a Culture That Doesn't Understand by Megan Devine

Books: I Wasn't Ready to Say Goodbye: Surviving, Coping and Healing After the Sudden Death of a Loved One by Brook Noel

Books: Reasons to Stay Alive by Matt Haig

Shattering the silence: Youth suicide preventionhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sRo5Db_7yVI

Lessons from the mental Hospital https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NHHPNMIK-fY

Brene brown on Vulnerability https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X4Qm9cGRub0

What I learned from my husband’s suicide: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jb_1IklnhaU

The bridge between suicide and life https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7CIq4mtiamY&t=672s

Subscribe to Empowering conversationZ podcast and hear immigrant stories and other issues important to immigrants on your favorite app by searching Empowering conversationZ or through our page https://www.mehrans.com/empowering-conversationz

In this episode, Empowering conversationZ hosts Jane Leu Upwardly Global Founder and Jina Krause-Vilmar the current President and CEO. Together they talk about:

-Upwardly Global story and the meaning behind its name,

-How supported over 18000 immigrants and what it can do for you and your family,

-The different ways male and female immigrants transition to the workforce,

-And ways immigrants can network in order to reach their professional goals.

Jane Leu is Upwardly Global’s founder. An internationally recognized social entrepreneur and expert on global immigration and workforce issues, Jane has nearly 20 years of experience as an innovator in the social sector. In addition to Upwardly Global, Jane was on the founding side of numerous projects and enterprises, including the Craigslist nonprofit venture forum, RefugeeWorks, seven Welfare-to-Work programs, and the Hauser Research Center for Nonprofit Organizations at Harvard University’s Kennedy School of Government, and most recently Smarter Good, a professional services firm that leverages talent in emerging and often high out-migration markets, like the Philippines. As the Founder and CEO of Upwardly Global (2000-2009), she focused on creating the day when skilled immigrants from around the world will be seamlessly integrated in the U.S. workforce in ways that optimize their skills.

Upwardly Global’s innovative idea and Jane’s leadership has been recognized by many awards, including Ashoka: Innovators for the Public; the John F. Kennedy New Frontier Award; the Jefferson Award for Community Service; as well as awards and support from the Manhattan Institute, Robin Hood Foundation, Rockefeller Foundation and Draper Richards Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship. Jane’s vision and work have been covered by National Public Radio, BBC, CNN, TIME, and Wall Street Journal. Jane holds a master’s degree from Columbia University’s School of International and Public Affairs and a bachelor’s degree from Tufts University. She is on the Advisory Council of the Migration Policy Institute, Joshua Venture Group, and Ashoka U, Ashoka’s university division.

Jina Krause-Vilmar (President & CEO): Jina brings 15 years of experience in the for-profit and non-profit sectors. She oversees the agency’s workforce operations in four cities. Under Jina’s leadership, Upwardly Global has expanded to skill a growing number of immigrant and refugee professionals. The organization is implementing an ambitious strategy to bring clear outcomes, strong evidence, innovation through a collaborative partnership with public and private sectors.

Prior to Upwardly Global, Jina worked alongside the government, the UN and corporations, to craft and implement solutions to enable refugees and immigrants to integrate into the workforce. At HIAS, she was charged with reshaping and building the agency’s economic integration programming in the U.S. and internationally, bringing clear outcomes, strong evidence, and collaborative partnerships with the public and private sectors. From 2013 to 2016, Jina started the Near East Foundation’s refugee portfolio in Jordan and Lebanon, advising the U.S. Department of State and USAID on Iraq and Syria response, and initiating the One Refugee Response.

Jina has been interviewed on Aljazeera America, the New York Times, Huffington Post, and Guardian, and published in CNN, Times Magazine, and other news outlets. Jina co-chaired, alongside UN Women, an international network of agencies to advance women and girls. Jina earned her MSc in Comparative Politics at the London School of Economics and a Bachelor’s degree in Government from the University of Texas at Austin.

https://www.upwardlyglobal.org/all-news/covid-19-resources-for-job-seekers-alumni/

https://www.imprintproject.org/

https://www.upwardlyglobal.org/all-news/where-can-i-find-help-during-the-pandemic-government-assistance-faqs/

Subscribe to Empowering conversationZ here https://www.mehrans.com/empowering-conversationz

How lonely do you feel as an immigrant?

-Did you have difficulty finding your first employment in the U.S?

-Are you looking for meaningful connections to serve as your allies?

-Are you currently looking?

If so, listen to this episode of Empowering conversationZ where Haleemat Fa-Yusuf talks about her journey in the States and how one organization became the pillars of her success. She will also talk about what in her experience is important to find a meaningful job here in the states.

Bio: Haleemat is a Nigerian immigrant living in the San Francisco Bay Area with her husband and their 3 young kids. Asides from her passion for serving marginalized communities through her career in public service, Haleemat is on a personal journey to make the most of life; paying attention to often overlooked concepts like the gorgeous blue skies and a beautifully illustrated children's book. She admires the simplicity, humor, and inspiration from the works of children authors like Sue Hendra and Kobi Yamada. She especially enjoys Kobi's work: What do you do with an idea?

Upwardly Global website: https://www.upwardlyglobal.org/

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She burst into tears as she talks about her biggest dream. A dream so big and unimaginable that aches her heart. For most of us, her dream is our everyday life. Empowering conversationZ guest this week was Maria Estrada, a trauma nurse, and a firm believer in humanity instead of documents. In this episode, she talks about the pains of not belonging, the pains of being rejected and disrespected during her migration journey, and also the many strengths she developed through time.

Bio: Maria Estrada was born in Mexico, and raised in San Diego, CA. Once in the states, she felt rejected as a Mexican national in America. She never felt belonged, as she was not Mexican enough to be accepted by her Mexican natives, or American enough to be allowed a place in her American society. Regardless, she embraced her Latina/Chicana roots in college and learned to wear her “undocumented” label like a badge of honor. Maria is currently an undocumented nurse practicing in the state of Texas. Working as a Trauma nurse felt like a perfect fit for her as she could find peace and solace knowing that she would serve those most in need. She finds satisfaction in providing healthcare to her community, for which healthcare is often denied, people like her father.

Her path to citizenship has been bumpy and traumatic, however, she has healed from her traumas through motherhood and she shares her narrative as an undocumama.

Subscribe to Empowering conversationZ podcast and hear immigrant stories and other issues important to immigrants on your favorite app by searching Empowering conversationZ

or

Through our page https://www.mehrans.com/empowering-conversationz