Teklit Michael

Delegate – Maryland

City of Residence: Silver Spring

Country of Origin: Eritrea

Arrival in the U.S.: 2018

Teklit Michael is the Refugee Congress Delegate for Maryland.

After spending over a decade advocating for his rights as an asylum seeker in Israel, Michael now resides in Silver Spring, MD.

During his 11 years in Tel Aviv, he served the Eritrean community as a vocal activist and part of the community leadership through such organizations as the Eritrean Women’s Community Center and the Union of Eritreans Initiative for Social Justice. He also co-founded the St Mary’s Eritrean Orthodox Church in Tel Aviv to provide further emotional and spiritual support to his community and served on the board of directors for the African Refugee Development Center and on the refugee steering committee for Amnesty International Israel.

”As a former asylum seeker/refugee myself, I can personally relate to the pain, desperation, hopes and needs of other people in the same situation,” says Michael. “Refugees are not just numbers on a piece of paper. They are my friends and family. It’s my obligation and responsibility to contribute to their needs and to make sure their voices are being heard.”