What I’m Doing Is for Them: Rosa Ortez-Cruz, interviewed by Lori Fernald Khamala

Rosa del Carmen Ortez-Cruz fled Honduras in 2002, following a brutal stabbing attack by her former partner that left her hospitalized for over a month. She has lived in the U.S. undocumented since then, but she cannot return to Honduras because her abuser has threatened her life. The Church of Reconciliation and Chapel Hill Mennonite Fellowship in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, offered Rosa sanctuary, because places of worship are considered safe havens for immigrants. She entered sanctuary in April 2018. Nearly a year-and-a-half later, her attorney continues to fight her case in court. To learn more about sanctuary or about Rosa, visit www.sanctuaryNC.org. A lifelong resident of North Carolina, Lori Fernald Khamala served as the director of the American Friends Service Committee’s NC Immigrant Rights Program for more than ten years. This interview has been translated, edited, and condensed for publication.