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About Martine

  • Author, speaker and spokeswoman on current immigration laws and reform

  • "Illegal Among Us" (Nov. 2018) recounts her journey through a 7- year deportation battle with no family or country, to success as a senior level executive with an advanced degree, a father she thought dead, and finally her long-sought U.S. citizenship. Huffington Post Blogger: Immigration Reform

  • Graduate of Hamilton College and Syracuse University with a Masters in Public Administration and Immigration Law 

  • Organizational Development Expert with 8+ years designing professional/management training and building organizational development strategies for fortune 500 companies and technology start-ups on a global level

  • Expert in inter-cultural corporate communication

  • ​Volunteer for immigration organizations to assist immigrants in navigating the broken court system

  • Native of Zambia and Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) but not recognized by either country as a citizen, resulting in years of being stateless

Martine Kalaw

Media Interview Topics

  1. The REAL face of Undocumented Immigration: 

    ​- It’s Not What You Think

  2. My Life as an Undocumented Citizen: Eleven years undocumented and a seven-year battle with ICE

  3. Realities of a Broken Immigration System and the People Caught in the Crossfire

  4. The Subhuman vs. Superhuman Illegal Immigrant Dichotomy; The majority don't fall in either category

  5. Going Public to Avoid Deportation: Speaking at Sen. John McCain’s Town Hall meeting on Immigration Reform

  6. Realities of the DREAM Act, DACA and the young adults who qualify for neither

  7. Top 10 Facts Everyone Should Know About Immigration 

  8. Immigrant’s Contribution to the Economy: We pay taxes 

  9. My journey to find my Father: Reunited through social media

  10. Immigration is a Global Issue

Illegal Among Us

Appearances

"Ms. Kalaw's highly energetic presentation of her voyage of citizenship was an honor to bear witness to. She made the information palatable for my class of scholars ranging from 9-12 years of age. Her presentation was akin to a burning candle in a dark room illuminating all of us on how to navigate the current social climate of immigration."
––Ms.Yisrael, Success Academy Charter Schools

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"I was extremely touched and inspired by Martine's story. She is an amazing role model for not only women struggling with immigration challenges but any woman striving for independence and success."
––Farah TayFour, Farah TayFour Fitness

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"The story of the undocumented immigrant struggle is one of the most tragic of our time.  It is a story that cuts across disciplines and spaces, and Martine, who is a master storyteller, uses her firsthand experience as an undocumented immigrant survivor to draw out key perspectives in law, psychology, public policy, race studies, sociology, and women's studies.  Her story is both inspiring and compelling, but, in addition, she leverages her experience to flesh out extremely important points on mentorship that are relevant to the human rights advocate and the investment banker alike."

––Tom O'Toole, Executive Director, Cornell University 

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"Martine came to speak to our employees about her personal journey and on the topic of unconscious bias for Black History Month. Her story was moving, authentic and educational. Our employees were enamored by her talk and lined up to speak with Martine at the end where she gave out signed copies of her book Illegal Among Us. Everyone thanked her for her honesty and sharing her story and were talking about it for the rest of the day."

–– Rachel Van Namee, VP of Talent & Culture,  Howard Hughes Corporation

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