Nexus: why the reason you were harmed matters as much as the harm

People are often surprised to learn that being badly hurt is not enough to win asylum. The law protects people harmed for particular reasons. So the question that decides many cases is not only "what happened to you?" but "why did it happen to you?"

Lawyers call this link nexus. If you understand it before you write your declaration, you can tell your story in a way that answers the question the judge will ask.

The five protected grounds

A refugee, under INA 101(a)(42)(A), is someone persecuted or with a well-founded fear of persecution "on account of" one of five grounds:

• race;
• religion;
• nationality;
• membership in a particular social group; or
• political opinion.

Harm suffered for some other reason, such as an ordinary crime, a personal dispute, or general violence that affects everyone, is not enough by itself, however serious it was.

"At least one central reason"

The statute sets the test. Under INA 208(b)(1)(B)(i), you "must establish that race, religion, nationality, membership in a particular social group, or political opinion was or will be at least one central reason for persecuting the applicant." The burden of proof is on you.

Two parts of that sentence do a lot of work.

• "At least one." The protected ground does not have to be the only reason. Persecutors often have more than one motive. A group might want your money and also want to punish your politics.
• "Central." The protected ground has to be central to why you were targeted, not a side detail. A case where the only real motive was money, and the protected ground was a passing remark, will struggle.

Whose opinion counts

For political opinion, the leading Supreme Court case is INS v. Elias-Zacarias, 502 U.S. 478 (1992). A young man fled Guatemala after guerrillas tried to recruit him. The Court held that persecution "on account of political opinion" means on account of the victim's political opinion, not the persecutor's.

The Court also held that forced recruitment does not by itself show persecution on account of political opinion. And it held that to overturn a finding on appeal, the evidence must be so compelling that no reasonable factfinder could fail to find the required fear.

The lesson for your case: you need evidence that connects the harm to your views or identity, or to views the persecutors believed you held. Show what they knew about you, and what they said.

How motive is proved

Persecutors rarely explain themselves in writing. Nexus is usually proved by putting facts together:

1. Their words. What did they say before, during or after the harm? Record it as exactly as you can remember, in your declaration.
2. Timing. Did the threats start after you joined a party, spoke at a meeting, converted, or refused an order?
3. Who else was targeted. Were other members of your family, church, party or group harmed in the same way?
4. What did not happen. Did they leave your money and take you, or ask about your beliefs instead of your belongings?
5. Country evidence. Reports showing that this group targets people like you support the link between the harm and the ground.

A note on particular social groups

"Membership in a particular social group" is the most argued of the five grounds, and the rules on how to define a group have changed several times in recent years. Family-based and domestic violence claims are an example. See After A-B- and L-E-A- came back. A group must be defined carefully, and nexus must still be shown to that group.

What to do

Before you write or revise your declaration, ask yourself why they chose you, and write down every fact that answers that question. Then go over those facts with a lawyer, who can match them to the right protected ground and the law where your case is heard.