UAO aims to serve as the African Community Resource Clearinghouse wherein constituents gather, access information, share experiences, exchange views, and coordinate organizational capacity development. UAO's hub of resources on this website is intended to assist community members in navigating services, programs and resources that are available to help them cope better in the United States.
Please, learn my name
I am Misturat Ganiyu. Disregard my age, occupation, gender, race, and other details that define a person. Concentrate, instead, on the beginning sentence in this blog. This is where people trip and stumble. At a young age, I realize the difficulty of my name. During that time, I would recite it to other elementary school kids and confusion followed. My name is pronounced as incorrectly as a first grader who utters a challenging word for the first time. A child may split the word into syllables or skip the word altogether, but it will return. The same concept applies to strangers meeting other strangers at a commonplace. Names are introduced and they part ways, but encounters happen.
Repeating a name accurately exemplifies kindness. If you say it wrong and apologize for it, that is alright as long as you try again. Practice helps. Don’t ask for a shortcut such as the person’s nickname. Sometimes, one is absent. Read more →
9th Annual Chicago African Summit a Success
We are proud to announce that United African Organization successfully hosted its ninth Annual Chicago African Summit & Community Resource Fair on May 30th 2015 at 10 West 35th Street. Despite the rainy weather, lively African immigrants and Chicago natives attended the event, which featured a Resource Fair where information about a variety of services and social programs was made available. Among the many resource fair participants there was the Illinois Eye institute, who performed on-the-spot screenings and vision tests, the Illinois Department of Human Rights, Metropolitan Family Services, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Chicago, and Urban Partnership Bank.
The summit also presented a line-up of panels that featured speakers from socially involved institutions delivering informative and motivational speeches ranging from the State of Illinois’ finances, immigration, mental health, housing rights, and social movements such as Black Lives Matter. Read more →
World Refugee Day Celebrations in Chicago
Two special events are just around the corner celebrating World Refugee Day in the Chicago area and the determination of women, men, and children who have been forced to flee their homes under threat of persecution, violence, and conflict.
Soccer Tournament and Potluck Celebration-June 20 at Foster Beach Soccer Fields from 11am-3pm
“Like” the World Refugee DayChicago Facebook page to stay up to date on these events!
TPS Registration Deadline for Liberia, Guinea, and Sierra Leone is May 20, 2015
Wednesday, May 20, 2015, is the deadline for eligible nationals of Liberia, Guinea, and Sierra Leone (and people without nationality who last habitually resided in one of those three countries) to register for Temporary Protected Status (TPS). The TPS designation runs from Nov. 21, 2014, through May 21, 2016.
Eligibility
To be eligible for TPS, you must demonstrate that you meet all eligibility criteria, including that you have been “continuously residing” in the United States since Nov. 20, 2014, and “continuously physically present in” the United States since Nov. 21, 2014. You must also undergo thorough security checks. Individuals with certain criminal records or who pose a threat to national security are not eligible for TPS. Read more →
Act Today to Protect Immigrant Services
ACT NOW: If there were ever a time that we needed you, it’s today. Please take 5 minutes now to act for immigrants across Illinois. Help us in fighting to keep Illinois a state where immigrants are welcome.
As you may know by now, Governor Rauner, in a sneaky and cowardly move, cut off funding for all immigrant services in Illinois last Friday afternoon, effective immediately. As of today, immigrants across Illinois lose access to assistance regarding US citizenship, health care, nutrition, and other services that help them thrive and contribute to our economy and community. For someone who portrays himself as a smart businessman committed to our state’s economic recovery, Governor Rauner seems oblivious to the five-fold returns that our state’s investment in immigrant communities create for our entire state. Read more →
Escape from a nightmare: Mohamed Sati finds American dream at AT&T
Mohamed Sati had just finished final exams of his senior year of high school. Remember that feeling? Invincible – like anything is possible. Unfortunately, in Sudan in the 1990’s, the possibilities also could be terrifying.
Mo was on his way to visit his sister when makeshift soldiers with guns stopped him at a roadblock. The Second Sudanese Civil War was in full swing. At 17, with no official paperwork, no notice, and no recourse, Mo was snatched up and forced into the army.
“Those are bad memories – really sad,” Sati says. “To see kids your age – friends, family – they’re with you one day then the next they’re gone. Bright kids who had amazing futures ahead, but they didn’t have that chance.”
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