13/05/2025
10 years ago, I became an attorney.
It’s a milestone that brings deep reflection—not just on what I’ve done, but who I’ve become in the process.
Over the past decade, I’ve stood beside people in some of the most vulnerable moments of their lives—asylum seekers, survivors of DV, families separated by borders. I’ve walked clients through status loss, travel risks, and reunification.
I built an immigration program where none existed. I mentored law students and led a legal team—all while running my own practice.
And when members of my community were going through unimaginable loss, I was the Persian-speaking attorney they called. I sat with them, listened, and translated the legal system into something human—something survivable.
At the end of one call, they said through tears:
“Mamnoon dookhtaram. Hamin ke zang zadi be man roohe dad.”
“Thank you, my daughter. Just your call gave me life.”
That brought me to tears. Because there is so much more to being an immigration attorney than words can capture. This work is emotional, spiritual, ancestral. It’s about community and showing up with purpose—rooted in love, not ego.
I’ve done all this as an Iranian immigrant woman—often the only one in the room. I’ve carried the complexities of being in-between: visible yet unseen, embraced yet questioned. Through it all, I’ve held fast to my love for my culture, language, and people.
Earlier this year, after a panel, a young Iranian woman told me, “You made me feel seen.” That’s the kind of impact that lasts. That’s what this work is about.
This anniversary isn’t just about years—it’s about grit. The kind required to run a business, lead a program, and show up for your people all at once. That grit comes from my family.
So here’s to ten years of lawyering, building, protecting, and carrying stories that were never mine, yet became part of me.
This work transformed me. It taught me how to stand in hard rooms with an open heart—and how to fight with both fire and restraint.
And somewhere along the way, I realized something:
After 10 years, the person I learned to defend best…was me.
