A Congolese refugee's 8-year struggle to reunite with her family in the US

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A Congolese refugee who is one of the plaintiffs in a federal lawsuit over the Trump administration's move to shut down the "join-to-follow" refugee program, poses at her home in Boise, Idaho, Monday, June 23, 2025 (AP Photo/Kyle Green)

BOISE, Idaho – The Congolese woman’s search for safety sent her on a terrifying trek of nearly 2,300 miles (3,700 kilometers) through southern Africa on foot when she was just 15.

Reuniting with her family has been a more difficult journey. For eight years, she clung to hope through delays and setbacks as she navigated a U.S. program that reconnects refugees with family members already in the country, and her dream of seeing them again seemed close to becoming a reality.

But President Don