Natalie

In late 1990, just as the Soviet Union was on the verge of collapse, my parents fled from their native Tashkent, Uzbekistan to escape the anti-Semitism they faced in the USSR. In America, my father (who was a mechanic in Russia), reinvented himself and became a florist in Bayside, Queens -- working long nights in the wedding industry to provide our family with the luxuries he only dreamed about in his youth.  Though my parents’ experience in the United States was a difficult one, it was the only way they could provide their children with the opportunity to dream as largely and vividly as possible.  

My parents’ struggle, first with the discrimination they faced in Russia and then with the hardships that came along with being an immigrant family in America, has played an integral role in shaping my professional, educational, and personal goals. As a devout advocate of social justice, I wish to pursue a career where my work will have lasting and impacting effects. My ultimate goal in life is to attain a dual degree (MIA and JD) and work in public-interest law against the global trafficking of youth in both the United States and in nations abroad. By being a NYNY Fellow, I am taking an important professional step toward fulfilling career goals and gaining a network of peers and mentors who can inspire me with their stories and life-advice. Ultimately, by merging “ambition with opportunity,” I know I will be able to take an active role in building my future and a better, more righteous world.