A federal immigration judge has granted asylum to a woman orphaned in Iran in the 1970s and adopted by an American war veteran. The woman, 56, has lived in the United States since she was adopted as a toddler and has no criminal record. She received a letter from the Department of Homeland Security in February that ordered her to appear for removal proceedings, saying she is eligible for deportation because she overstayed her visa in March 1974 at 4 years old.

Background

The woman grew up in a Christian, military family on a farm in Wisconsin and was taught to be patriotic. However, the documents she received from the government described her as an ‘alien.’ Immigration officials told her she was being arrested, but released and tracked with an ankle monitor.

Her lawyer, Emily Howe, said the government had the power to agree she is an American citizen. ‘Instead they treated her like a terrorist, like she was the worst of the worst criminals,’ Howe said. ‘It felt very Big Brother, very Orwellian.’

Ruling

Judge Andrew Fishkin’s ruling likely ends a monthslong ordeal for the California woman, one of thousands adopted from abroad who were never granted citizenship because of bureaucratic loopholes between adoption and immigration law. Fishkin declared her a refugee, entitled to work in the U.S. His ruling puts the woman on a pathway to being recognized as a citizen.

Original reporting: KCCI Des Moines — read the source article.