Inside the brutal, thorough process of vetting refugees

What kind of knife was the man that killed your father holding? Can you remember how many stars were on the jacket of the military officer that raped you? How many hours were you on the boat that night before the smuggler shot your brother and threw him overboard?

How did you survive if you couldn’t swim?

Pause.

I give her time to rest. I let the interpreter decide when the client is ready again.