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Preparedness before Crisis

StoryShield, from Their Story is Our Story, is a program that trains immigrant families to create firsthand, phone-based video stories that highlight their community contributions and ties. If you are detained or deported, your story can be used to raise public awareness and rally community support.

The Reality

What families are facing:

  • Detention and deportation can happen suddenly
  • When a crisis happens, there is little time to explain your story
  • Too often, stories are told about families — not by families
  • Fear and misinformation can isolate families when support is most needed

The Insight

Stories can be protective:

  • When stories exist before a crisis, communities can respond faster and with more credibility
  • First-hand narratives humanize families beyond headlines
  • Prepared materials reduce delay when urgent advocacy is needed
  • Personal stories build long-term understanding and support

The Offer

What this program gives families:

  • Safety: Support to create stories without putting families at risk
  • Control: Families decide what is shared, how, and when — always
  • Support: A trusted network that can activate storytelling during crisis

The Process

What participation looks like:

  1. Trusted Introduction: A community connector helps families join safely
  2. Story Preparation: Phone-based tools and culturally-grounded support
  3. Secure Holding: Stories are held securely until families choose to share
  4. Rapid Response: If a crisis happens, support can activate quickly

No deadlines. No pressure. No obligation to go public.

You are always in control:

  • You decide which parts of your story are shared
  • You may remain anonymous at every step
  • Nothing is published without your consent
  • You can pause or withdraw at any time

Your story always belongs to you.

Prepare a Plan in case of detention

StoryShield is not a legal service.

Questions? Contact Us

What would you do if you had to leave everything behind?

By the end of 2024, more than 123.2 million people worldwide had been forcibly displaced from their homes due to war, persecution, or human rights abuses.

An increase of 7.2 million over 2023, that’s more than 19,619 people every day — roughly one person every 4.4 seconds.

They arrive in refugee camps and other countries, like the US, seeking the one thing they’ve lost: safety.

Fleeing political imprisonment, ethnic violence, religious persecution, gang threats, or war crimes, they come with what little they managed to carry:

Legal papers – if they’re lucky.

A single backpack.

Sometimes a child’s hand in theirs.

They also carry the weight of what they left behind: fractured families, homes they’ll never return to, professions they loved, friends and relatives they may never see again.

They carry loss most of us can’t imagine – but also the truth of what they’ve endured.

At TSOS, we believe stories are a form of justice. When someone shares their experience of forced displacement, they reclaim their voice. And when we amplify that voice – through film, photography, writing, and advocacy – the world listens. Hearts soften. Communities open. Policy begins to shift.

That shift matters. Because when neighbors understand instead of fear…

when lawmakers see people, not politics…

when a teacher knows what her student has survived…

Rebuilding life from the ashes becomes possible.

We’re fighting an uphill battle. In today’s political climate, refugee stories are often twisted or ignored. They’re reduced to statistics, portrayed as national threats, or used to score political points.

The truth – the human, nuanced truth – gets lost, and when it does, we lose compassion.

We are here to share their truth anyway.

At TSOS, we don’t answer to headlines or algorithms. We are guided by a simple conviction: every person deserves to be seen, heard, and welcomed.

Our work is powered by the people we meet — refugees and asylum seekers rebuilding after loss, allies offering sanctuary, and communities daring to extend belonging.

Your support helps us share their stories — and ensure they’re heard where they matter most.

“What ultimately persuaded the judge wasn’t a legal argument. It was her story.”

— Kristen Smith Dayley, Executive Director, TSOS


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