On the afternoon of August 14, 1945, George Mendonsa was sitting in a movie theater with his date in New York City. Home from the Pacific Theater, where he served in the navy, Mr. Mendonsa was expecting to return to war and to the long-anticipated (and dreaded) invasion of Japan. Suddenly, the movie stopped, the lights came on, and someone announced that the war was over.
The theater goers spilled out into the street. Mr. Mendonsa and his date Rita Petri went to a bar where they imbibed maybe a bit too much. They then returned to the celebration in Times Square.
The 20-year old Mendonsa had witnessed some horrible sights during his time in the navy. Most recently, he saw two Kamikaze planes destroy an American ship. Over 300 servicemen were killed. Many others were horribly wounded. Mr. Mendonsa assisted at the scene, and witnessed the American nurses tending to the injured.
As he walked through the square, Mr. Mendonsa caught sight of a woman in a nurse’s uniform. In an instant, he grabbed her, swooped her down, and kissed her. The moment was captured by photographer Alfred Eisenstaedt and his photo came to symbolize the relief and exuberance that our country felt at the end of World War II (though the continued glorification of Mr. Mendonsa’s non-consensual kiss is a bit creepy).
Although the photo itself became famous, for many years, the people in the photo were unknown. A number of men and women came forward, claiming that they were the ones in the picture. Only in recent years has the mystery been solved (probably).
It turns out that the woman in the photo (the kissee, if you will) was not a nurse; she was a 21-year old dental assistant from Queens named Greta Zimmer. Ms. Zimmer was also a refugee from Nazi-controlled Austria.
Margarete “Greta” Zimmer was born on June 5, 1924 in eastern Austria. Her parents, Max and Ida, and her two sisters were Jewish. In the years leading up to World War II, Austria drifted into the orbit of Nazi Germany, and conditions for Jews deteriorated. Then, in March 1938, Austrian Nazis took control of the government. In the same month, German troops occupied the country. Despite the overt anti-Semitism and the increasing danger, the Zimmer family tried to remain in their homeland.
By 1939, the family’s thinking had changed. The danger was mounting and opportunities to leave were disappearing. Max and Ida decided to send their daughters out of Austria, even if they had not secured passage for themselves. One daughter was sent to Palestine. Greta, then 15 years old, and her sister Jo came to the United States (lucky for them, given the strict quota laws in place at the time). The girls hoped that the separation from their parents would be only temporary.
Relatives in New York welcomed Greta and Jo to the United States. Greta volunteered as an air-raid warden during the war. She took classes at the Fashion Institute of Technology.
On the day of the photo, Greta Zimmer was working in a dental office near Times Square. All morning, they had been hearing rumors that the war had ended, and after lunch, she went over to Times Square, where she saw a lighted billboard declaring “V-J Day!” As for the kiss, Ms. Zimmer remembered it in a 2005 interview—
Suddenly, I was grabbed by a sailor. It wasn’t that much of a kiss. It was more of a jubilant act that he didn’t have to go back. I found out later he was so happy that he didn’t have to go back to the Pacific where [he] had already been through the war. The reason he grabbed somebody dressed like a nurse [was because] he felt so very grateful to the nurses who took care of the wounded.
I’m not sure about the kiss… it was just somebody celebrating. It wasn’t a romantic event. It was just an event of “Thank God the war is over.”
After the war, Ms. Zimmer married Dr. Mischa Friedman and had two children. She studied and later worked at Hood College in Maryland. It wasn’t until years later that Ms. Zimmer saw the photo and recognized herself in it. She also eventually met George Mendonsa, who by then had married Rita Petri, his date on V-J Day.
Ms. Zimmer never saw her parents again. They died in Auschwitz. She also lost many other family members during the Holocaust. In all, of 181,000 Jews in Austria in 1938, approximately 65,000 were murdered by the Nazis. Most of the remainder fled the country. Only a few thousand Jews remained in Austria by the end of the war.
Greta Zimmer Friedman died on September 8, 2016. She was buried in Arlington National Cemetery, next to her late husband, who was a military veteran. She was 92. May her memory be a blessing.
HelloJason,
It’s been a while I am following the site and its been helping a lot.thank you!
I have 1 question please: I was on the uscis site I saw you can apply for green card trough refugee process to be qualify you must:Have been physically present in the United States for at least 1 year after being admitted as a refugee
Have not had your refugee admission terminated
Have not already acquired permanent resident (Green Card) status.
It s been 2 years since I am here in the US as a refugee waiting for interview nothing comes yet! You think the site said is after receiving the refugee status or someone can give it try while waiting?
Thank you !
It won’t work. You have to have been “admitted” to the US as a refugee, meaning your passport entry stamp says you are a refugee. If you have filed for asylum and are waiting in the queue, it does not count for purposes of calculating the one year. Keep thinking creatively, though, and maybe you can come up with something! Take care, Jason
Hi Jason,
What are the options for someone on TPS that have been issued NOID Asylum but cannot go to court since there is a TPS? Could they choose to relinquish their TPS just so they can go to court to get a final decision? the way I see it, the safest bet is living in limbo, which might be OK for a young man but for people with family and kids it must be tough.
I doubt you can cancel your TPS in time to get your asylum case to court. You have to respond to the NOID in 16 days. The best bet is to respond to the NOID and try to win. If TPS ends and you have no other option, you could apply again for asylum at that time. Take care, Jason
hello Jason
if asylum officer denial case after review NOID , can we go to federal court. If not what is the further option?
Thank you.
I do not know whether you can go to the federal court about that. I have never heard of that being done. Basically, that is the end of the case. If you remain here and go out of status, you can apply again for asylum, but other than that, I know of no way to continue a case that has been denied. Take care, Jason
If you got a NOID, then you will be placed in removal proceeding if you have not other status and will have a chance to present your case to an immigration court? @jason, is that not the case?
Normally, you get a NOID because you are still in-status. If you are out of status, there is no NOID, you just go directly to Immigration Court. The only time you get a NOID and then go to court is if you go out of status after the NOID, but before the decision. It is possible, but pretty uncommon. Take care, Jason
if a husband come to USA through I-730 and he has a job that he can not leave in a country other than the united states. how long can he stay out if he is a travel document holder? will he lose his asylum status if he stays out the united states for a long time? will he still able to apply for green card later??
I do not know of a specific rule on this point, but if you stay out of the US beyond the expiration of your travel document, it may be difficult (or impossible) to return here. If you plan to stay outside the US for a long period of time, I recommend you talk to an immigration lawyer before you go, so he can research this issue for you. Take care, Jason
Thank you
dear Jason,
I have been reading your blogs since February 2016 but I have question about asylum processing time which is,
Do they have criteria to call beyond what they mentioned which we don’t know like country of Origin, religion, Political party in your country you are a member? Does your Educational background affect your time of processing?
is it okay to ask them in person to know the status of your case?
It is ok to ask the status of your case, though often the people you can ask do not have much information. As for processing time, my experience is that the factors you mention have no effect on how long a case takes. Take care, Jason
Hi Jason,
I did my interview at Arlington Asylum office on November 2015. I went to the asylum office two times – Jan -16 & April -16 to check the status of my case. First time, they said they officer that did your interview was transferred to another office and we may call you 2nd Interview. The 2nd time, they said, a decisions is not ready and we will send you the decision to the email. my question that I would like to ask you is, what is the average times to get a decision from Arlington office? and if the officer who did my interview was transferred to another office how they will take a decision without 2nd interview?
Sometimes, they can make a decision based on the notes left by the first officer. There is no average time for a decision, and we have people waiting over 900 days (and counting). You may want to inquire with the USCIS Ombudsman, a link is at right. They can sometimes help with delayed cases, or maybe at least give you more insight about the reason for the delay. Good luck, Jason
Hi Jason I have been a fan of yours for long time now , I have exactly similar case with Mr Hassan.My Asylum was Applied on Oct 2013 ,Interviewed on Nov 2015 ,Got Recommended Approval On Dec 2015 ,Inquired about my final decision four times personally and via e-mail but just only got different answers telling me to wait for final decision. Obviously I am fed up with the lack of responsiveness and transparency of the Arlington Asylum office. very recently I inquired the USCIS ombudsman regarding the where about of my final decision. I am now waiting for their answers . I will update you with the status from their side. Finally, I want to thank Jason for your continued effort to educate asylum applicants and Hope someone benefits from my story!!!
I will be curious to hear whether the Ombudsman does anything useful – please let me know. For what it’s worth, you are not alone. Many people are stuck in a similar situation and it is a real tragedy, especially for those separated from spouses and children. Good luck, Jason
Hi Jason I might be among the luckiest few, I just got my final approval in almost 10 months. The ombudsman worked for me. Thank you for all your effort and concern. I wish the best of luck for everyone!!!!
Congratulations – and thank you for letting us know, Jason
Good to read, as Paul Harvey used to say, “the rest of the story”!!
Thank you – I hope all is well, Jason
Hello Jason,
We have always appreciated your helps through out the asylum process in us.
I’m an asylee from Afghanistan, I already passed 6 months of 1 year to be eligible to apply for my green card through asylum grant.
Now I want to travel outside of us to visit my family in Pakistan for couple of weeks. Do you have any idea about the processing of travel documents? Mean the time frame.
Visiting family members is a good reason to apply for travel document?
Travel document, is it a trustable and acceptable document for embassies to apply for a visitor visa with?
And obtaining travel document can affect eligblity of getting green card?
I would appreciate to hear about any other asylees, who had the same experience, if they don’t mind to share.
Thanks alot.
The processing time is always changing, but my guess is that it takes 4 to 6 months to get a refugee travel document, and it might take longer, so the sooner you apply before your trip, the better. You do not need to give a reason when you apply for the refugee travel document, and some countries accept it like a passport. You have to ask the countries you want to visit whether they will accept it. If not, you have to travel on your passport, which might (but probably won’t) cause problems for you later with USCIS. As long as you re-enter the US with the travel document, and you do not go to your home country, you should be ok. Also, it should have no effect on your eligibility for a green card, as long as you do not go to Afghanistan. Take care, Jason
Thanks alot.
I’m a web developer, it would be honor to assist you with any help in this field, if you want so.
john plz contact on mashalahmedmughal@gmail.com
Thank you – you can see that I need it, I suppose. I do actually have some people helping, but I do not have time to organize what I need. Thank you for the offer, Jason
Dear jason
Can I ask a Q about I-730 ?
Sure…
Thanx Jason
If i apply for I-730 to my kids how little ng it will take till i get approval for them ?? And how long it will take till they get the visa to US ? Is there any long waitting list in form I-730 ????
The I-730 process is relatively fast. There is a 2-step process. First, USCIS approves the I-730 and then the US embassy processes the cases and issues their visas. We have had cases where the family members arrive in the US 4 months after filing the I-730, but more typically, it takes 6 to 8 months, and sometimes longer. It is rare that it would take more than a year. Good luck, Jason
I live in NYC
Hi Jason, Can I work as a real estate salesperson if I have EAD through asylum case pending? Thanks
I believe so, but I really do not know – I think you need to be licensed, and I do not know the requirements for that. You would have to contact the licensing body and ask them. Take care, Jason
hi Jason thank you for your help . highly appreciated for you doing . i have been reading each article and comment . relay helped me a lot .i have question today . if i change my asylum case form state to other i know i takes some delay how long it will take from your experience ? thank again for your help . take care
I think it is faster to put the case on a donkey and let the donkey carry it to the new asylum office. My guess is that it will cause a delay of at least a few months, but it should not be much more than that. You probably should follow up with the old and new offices to make sure the case is transferred and that you retain your place in the queue. Take care, Jason
Hi Jason, I’ve been reading each and every blog you post, it’d highly appreciable I would say, I’ve a question, filed my case in CO on August 2015 and it’s more than a year waiting for the interview to be schedule, I know it gonna take a while, I’ve heard if somebody have a pending assylum case for two years then one can file petition for his/her spouse, can i do that if my pending case goes beyond Aug 2017?
I have never heard of such a rule, though I wish there were some rule like that. However, I think it does not exist. If you learn otherwise, please let me know. Take care, Jason
Hi Jason ! I m waiting for my asylum interview from 09/21/2014 and nothing change(((( in NY office. Maybe u know smth about cases from Ukraine? How it was and if I can win with Ukrainian case? Thank u
I cannot tell you how to win your case. In general, it seems that cases from the Ukraine are difficult to win, but it depends on the facts of the case. As for NY, it is moving slowly. I did a post on June 6, 2016 that discusses this and might help you understand better what is happening. Take care, Jason
Jason thanks for answers. U have experience with Ukrainian s cases? Thanks
We have about 10 Ukrainian cases.
Wow! From Lugansk and Doneck region?
I do not know, but I think the Wikipedia article about her lists her home town. Take care, Jason
Hi Jason! Can u help with edit my history. I need know before interview that everything correct ( it coming soon because I m waiting during 2 years) Shure not for free))))
It is not something I normally do, but if you email me (JDzubow@DzubowLaw.com) about what you need me to do, I can tell you whether I can help. Take care, Jason