The two women met for the first time last week at a sleek Georgetown hotel, where they were speakers at a glittering charity dinner. They shook hands and hugged across a vast gulf of culture, geography and faith: one a devout Muslim from West Africa with her hair carefully hidden under a tight scarf, the other a gregarious South Asian in a stylish sari and costume earrings.

In the past decade, several new laws have allowed abused foreign-born women, including those who entered the United States illegally and those whose immigration status depends on their spouse, to obtain legal residency on their own.

The training series is possible through a grant from the U.S. Department of Justice’s Office on Violence Against Women.

Critical legislation would help counteract the severe “chilling effect” that exists due to immigrant victims’ fear and confusion about what treatment they can expect from police—deterring crime-reporting and help-seeking, hindering law enforcement investigations and prosecutions, and undermining public safety for us all.

They arrived with bags of toys and books, and they spent all morning painting, sorting stuffed animals, and decorating a room. Their work didn’t stop there.

The congressional funding reflects a valuable commitment to immigrant women and girls fleeing violence and exhibits confidence in Tahirih as a distinguished advocate for the courageous women and girls.

Federal protections are intended to encourage non-citizen survivors of violent crimes to come forward and get help, but a push for local police to enforce immigration law could unravel the intent of the protections, which have been painstakingly elaborated over 15 years.