D.C. attorney Loide Jorge was once considered a dreamer herself.
Now her past as an immigrant influences her work on behalf of those lying low, looking for a legal path to citizenship and her other love -- performing as a jazz singer on any given night in D.C.
Sitting up high in her Northwest D.C. law office, each day for Jorge seems to get harder. "I've literally had to tell them, there is nothing I can do for you. Keep your money, take care of your families and lay low for what it's worth," said Jorge.
As an immigration attorney, memories of those she was unable to save, refuse to fade. Like the case of Bryan Chavez. Bryan was executed by MS 13 Gang members in El Salvador. He was in the final phases of interviewing to return to the US legally. It happened in 2013, the same year his father because a U.S. citizen.
A picture of her immigrant father, a reminder to Jorge, to never stop. In her other life, surrounded by the dark walls of JoJo's on U Street. Jorge is transformed:
"It drew me in, and I have been forever enraptured by jazz."
This is why Jorge takes refuge in Jazz. The daughter of student immigrants from East and West Africa, the Jorge family found themselves in Paris, Michigan, then California.
When her parent's student visas expired, she became what is now called a dreamer. It wasn't until college until she because a US citizen. The Sounds coming out her mouth, reflecting her past. Her story lives in her music.
"Everyone is frustrated, a lot of answers we don't have and policy shifts we are at the whim at the way the administration enforces the laws. In the climate we're in now, people are scared and rightfully so."
Jorge says jazz is a way to absorb love and emotions and also a way to release it. And it's that love she intends to give. Always.
