Sukura Muhamed’s life will be forever scarred by the personal tragedy she has faced.

Living in a legal limbo while her appeal for sanctuary languishes somewhere in the immigration bureaucracy, the Ethiopian woman continues to hang on to hope for the family she left behind.

Muhamed arrived in the United States in 2001 on a six-month humanitarian visa. She had been raped and shot, left paralyzed from the hips down. Her first husband was killed after being accused of supporting rebels. Her tenuous medical condition allowed her to escape to the United States for treatment. She left behind her second husband and seven children.

Almost five years later, her application for asylum awaits action. She was interviewed by immigration officials in Boston two months ago. So far, she hasn’t heard anything.

Stories like Muhamed’s are all too common. Men and women – some with legitimate asylum claims and others hoping just for a better life in the United States – become mired in a U.S. immigration system that is dysfunctional, lacking staff and resources necessary to consider applications in a timely and efficient manner. Meanwhile, the United States tries to balance a schizophrenic attitude toward immigration, wanting to restrict access and yet also remain a shining light for the world’s oppressed peoples.

As legislation that would make it tougher for people to claim religious persecution as a justification for asylum works its way through Congress – with the support of President Bush – the debate over who should be granted protection will be renewed.

Muhamed shouldn’t have to wait any longer. She deserves an answer.