Migrants navigate complicated immigration process 6 months after flight to Martha's Vineyard
MARTHA'S VINEYARD - A young man named Eliud sat in the front row of a small community theatre on Martha's Vineyard. He and three of his cousins watched a movie screen play out their story, an unexpected journey to the Vineyard last September.
"We had no idea that we were coming here but in reality, when we landed on this island and saw this amazing community we were so thankful for it. It made it a lot easier," Eliud told a group of theatergoers.
Eliud is one of the 49 Venezuelan migrants featured in a new documentary film about their surprising journey to the island. Called "Waiting to Continue," the film debuted at the Martha's Vineyard Film Festival last week.
Local filmmakers Ollie Becker and Tim Persinko say they grabbed their cameras on that fateful September day, with an emotional and journalistic instinct to record what was going on.
"My wife went that morning to drop some toys off and called me in tears from just seeing the kids there," Becker said.
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis took credit for organizing the plane that brought men, women, and children to the Vineyard, without forewarning.
"Waiting to Continue" focuses heavily on the effort by Martha's Vineyard natives to help provide the asylum seekers with food, shelter, and cell phones. After the island, they were given temporary housing and more resources at Joint Base Cape Cod.
Months later, Eliud has made it back to the Vineyard and hopes to stay there for the summer.
"What we experienced from leaving Venezuela to coming here was very impactful," he said.
His journey and the journey of dozens of other migrants is far from over. They now have to wade through a complicated and backlogged immigration system.
All of the migrants are seeking asylum, according to immigration attorney Rachel Self, who is representing five of them. After filing for asylum, they must wait at least 150 days before seeking work authorization and getting approval for that could take months.
"That can take anywhere from 30 days to 18 months to process depending on how quickly the agency is moving and with COVID and backlogs we've been seeing the agency moving at a snail's pace or slower," Self said. "It creates a marginalized class of people."
Self says more than half of the asylum seekers have stayed in Massachusetts and most are taking English Language classes. All of the kids are also enrolled in schools. Now, they are waiting to provide for themselves.
"Every single one with a phone, who has my cell phone number, the text I get most often, and I'm regularly in contact with most of them is, when can I work?" she said.
Self says many of the migrants continue to struggle with trust after feeling deceived by the people who brought them to the Vineyard. Eliud and his cousins do trust one group of people, the islanders, who first welcomed them.
"Even though they are victims, they're also survivors and they come to the table with hope," Self said.