The Chromebook Abrahan received during a digital literacy course is helping him build a new life in America.
As one of three Bridge Refugee Services clients from Cuba to participate in the course this summer, Abrahan uses the laptop daily to learn English, translate documents, and email the lawyer helping him apply for asylum.
“Here, technology is completely different and more up-to-date,” he said. “I felt I didn’t know anything about the technology, so I took the program to learn more. Now, I know more about technology and what I can do with the computer.”
Abrahan, 29, worked as an accountant in Ciego de Ávila, Cuba, before COVID-19 lockdowns in 2020 and US economic sanctions saw a rise in citizen protests over food and medical shortages in his motherland. Following the loss of his job and mounting persecution, he contacted Jorge Gallo, a family friend in Chattanooga, to see if he could stay with him if he could migrate to the US.
Jorge and his wife, Leidys, who resettled in Chattanooga as Cuban refugees in 2010, agreed to help.
“I felt relief that when I come out I would have somewhere to go, but if, in that moment, I didn’t have anyone here, it would be better to be in the streets in the US than being in home in Cuba,” he said.
Abrahan was given permission to leave Cuba in November 2020, but stayed to care for his dying father. In December 2021, he crossed the border into Texas and was transported a week later to an immigration detention center in Louisiana, where he waited a few days before being released to fly to Chattanooga. He arrived January 3, 2022, and soon after contacted Bridge for help.
“They helped me with money and food stamps and referred me to the ESL classes,” he said.
When he heard about the opportunity to participate in the digital literacy course, he signed up as a first step to eventually working again as an accountant.
Prior to the class, Abrahan said he didn’t know how to send emails, navigate the features of the Chromebook, or use Google Maps. He also learned about online security, how to safely access vetted online resources, and pay his bills online.
“I learned a lot of stuff that I didn’t even know before,” he said.
Abrahan and his two classmates were among 23 Bridge clients to graduate from the program since Bridge partnered with Tech Goes Home Chattanooga in 2020 to offer the curriculum.
“We try to target a wide range of underserved populations,” said Sammy Lowdermilk, Tech Goes Home Chattanooga’s program director. “We can only do that through partnerships.”
Through the partnerships, nonprofits like Bridge teach their own clients using customizable digital literacy curriculum from Tech Goes Home, a digital inclusion program of the Enterprise Center.
“We come in and lay the technology piece on top of everything else the organization, school, or church is already providing,” Lowdermilk said. “We train somebody with the organization and provide the curriculum, the devices, the support, or whatever else is needed.”
Lowdermilk said immigrants, refugees, asylees, and entrants often face educational and employment obstacles once they resettle in America because of language barriers and limited opportunities to use reliable technology in their homelands.
“In today’s digital world, they need to be able to use a computer, so we want to remove a lot of those obstacles,” Lowdermilk said. “Individuals facing tough times could use some help and that’s why we’re here – to make sure everyone is on a level playing field as much as possible.”
When students graduate from the program, they have the option to purchase the laptop they used during the 15 hours of classroom instruction for $50. A grant has allowed Bridge to purchase the computers for its clients.
Having the computer means Abrahan can more easily email the lawyer helping him obtain his work permit.
“Thanks to that, I’m working with what I learned here in the home with the computer that they give me,” he said. “After I talked to the lawyer, I feel a little more enthusiastic because he said, with asylum, I have to wait 180 days to try to put in the application for the (Employment Authorization Document), so I know it’s going to be a long time, but now that I talked to them, I see more good stuff and am being patient.”
Abrahan said he’s thankful Bridge was able to enroll him in its Refugee Cash Assistance program so he can pay his lawyer’s fees and other expenses while he waits for employment authorization.
While he waits, he’s using his Chromebook to learn English – a skill he knows he’ll need to work as an accountant in the US in the future.
“I’m trying to learn English and go to the ESL classes because I want that kind of job,” he said.
The digital literacy course also introduced Abrahan to other Cuban entrants going through similar circumstances.
“I had the chance to know them in class,” he said. “Now, I have new friends.”
Unlike refugees, entrants who are seeking asylum like Abrahan who may access the US must forge their own path with limited assistance from resettlement agencies like Bridge. In addition to cash assistance and case management services, Abrahan qualified for medical assistance that has allowed him to seek mental health services to cope with the worry he feels for his wife and two daughters, aged 7 and 3. They remain in Cuba while awaiting reunification with an uncertain timeframe.
“I know my family is not safe in Cuba,” he said. “Every time I talk to my wife and daughters, they cry all the time. It is a very hard situation.”
He’s grateful for Bridge and Leidys and Jorge, who opened not only their home to him, but also offered the emotional support for a journey they’ve also experienced. The couple met at the Chattanooga airport in 2010 when Leidys first arrived from Havana, Cuba, with her mom, stepdad, younger sister, and brother.
“I was 22 years old,” Leidys said. “[Jorge] was one of the volunteers who met us in the airport. He came two months before me as a refugee, too.”
They quickly fell in love, married, and later welcomed a son, who will be six next month. Leidys now works as a Spanish-language interpreter for Bridge – a service that’s been in increasing demand as more Cubans have relocated to East Tennessee.
Leidys said she and Jorge, who works for the US Postal Service, didn’t hesitate to open their home to Abrahan when he reached out for help.
“It’s a long process and we try to support him in anything that he needs,” she said.
Abrahan said he’s ready to work so he can support his family.
“I don’t feel like I’m independent at all,” Abrahan said. “I want to have a job and learn how to drive because I depend on who will get me here and get me there. I want to be self-sufficient.”