Abdou Taleb Ali recently learned his asylum hearing may still be a year or two away in 2027 or 2028. He’s been in the United States for more than 18 months, crossing the border illegally after fleeing his home in the African country of Mauritania, where he claims he was politically persecuted.
“I’m very relieved,” he said after his September court hearing in New York. “Because, you know, I was about to lose everything right now. My case, the money that I paid them. Everything.”
According to Syracuse University’s immigration tracking data, there are more than 2 million active asylum cases waiting to be heard. A shortage of immigration judges and the Trump administration’s prioritizing deportations have added to the backlog.
Ali acknowledges there are Americans who feel he shouldn’t even be in the U.S.
“They are right. This is their country. But I’m just a guy looking for safety and security,” he told CBS News.
Ali found refuge in a migrant shelter in Queens, New York.
“I used to sleep in bed with my wife and son,” he said. “Now, I’m next to a thousand men who I don’t even know.”
Ali stayed in the shelter for about two months, during which he worked on preparing the necessary documentation for his asylum claim.
“Since then, I’m working. I’m taking care of myself. As you see. You gotta find your own job. You gotta make your own money,” he said.
Ali insists he’s trying to do things the right way. He regularly checks in with immigration, has a Social Security number and work permit.
“I make food for people. I make people happy. You know, I’m doing something good for the economy, you know. I’m paying my own taxes. … So I think I deserve a chance,” he said.
Ali was recently promoted at the restaurant where he works, and while he works 12 hours a day, six days a week to pay rent and build up savings, he’s also trying to remain invisible.
Ali said there are “bad people” who come into the U.S. illegally, but said, “The only thing that I did is, like, escaping my own home, trying to find a place that they can provide safety and secure for me.”
He said he hopes one day to reunite with his wife and children, who wait anxiously in Mauritania to learn his fate in court. In spite of the obstacles, Ali remains determined to write his own American success story.
“I have faith in the American government,” Ali said. “This is the greatest country. You can do whatever you wanna do in this country. As long as you doing in the, the good way, like respecting the law, working hard, you can live your dream, you know.”
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