The Golden Door: January 2024
ILAP Releases Advocacy & Policy Priorities for 2024
ILAP rolled out our 2024 Advocacy and Policy Priorities this month. We look forward to engaging with all levels of government and our extraordinary advocacy partners in Maine and beyond to advance immigrant justice in the year ahead.
Our priorities are informed by and built on the needs and goals identified by our client community and other immigrant communities in Maine.
Learn more about ILAP's theory of change and our priorities:
ILAP Joins Widespread Support for Creating a Maine Office of New Americans
ILAP joined partners yesterday in testifying before the State and Local Government Committee in support of establishing an Office of New Americans. The hearing room was overflowing with support for LD 2167, with advocates providing 3+ hours of inspiring testimony.
"By acting as a centralized hub of information, resources, and connections, this Office will play a key role in ensuring that individuals and families can secure basic needs, immigration status, meaningful work utilizing their skills and talents, and a secure, prosperous future," said Policy Director Lisa Parisio in ILAP's testimony. "This is the time to invest in each other and unlock Maine’s potential."
If funded by Maine’s legislature, Maine would become the 19th state to join the Office of New Americans network, setting the entire Maine community on a path to a more prosperous future.
Find the full Plan to Establish the Maine Office of New Americans and Executive Summary here. The Executive Summary is available in French, Spanish, Portuguese, Arabic, Somali, and Lingala.
Reflecting on Human Trafficking Prevention Month
January was Human Trafficking Prevention Month. Trafficking is the use of force, fraud, or coercion to make another person provide commercial sex or labor against their will. Both sex trafficking and labor trafficking occur here in Maine and impact immigrant communities.
ILAP helps survivors of labor and sex trafficking secure immigration protections, a critical step toward achieving short-term safety and long-term stability. We thank our partners at Preble Street for the extraordinary work they do to assist survivors and at-risk immigrants and other communities in Maine.
As the month comes to a close, we must all commit to taking action against human trafficking all year.
LEARN MORE & SUPPORT:
Polaris Project (national): www.polarisproject.org
Preble Street (Maine): www.preblestreet.org/2023/07/28/human-trafficking-in-maine
Survivor Speak (Maine): www.survivorspeakusa.net
Thank You!
We’re excited to share that, because of the steadfast support of our community, ILAP met the $25,000 match opportunity generously provided by the George J. and Theresa L. Cotsirilos Family Foundation and our annual fund goal for 2023.
Every gift added to our collective impact and together we:
Helped 2,314 people and 1,852 of their family members through direct legal services.
Engaged 2,233 people through 108 community legal education and outreach events.
Celebrated pro bono attorneys donating 3,620 hours of their time providing full or limited representation to asylum seekers and vulnerable immigrant youth, valued at $1,156,840.
We’re now looking to the year ahead, ready to push for our advocacy and policy priorities and ready to help more people seek safety, be with family, and pursue a better life.
Thank you again – achieving justice for immigrants will take all of us.
We are grateful to Blanchard for sharing his story. Thank you to Why Not Productions, Genius Black, Junes Dreamseller, and Pine Tree Society, whose creativity and expertise made this video possible. French, Spanish, and Portuguese subtitles are available via the "CC" icon.
Save the Date: February 29th is Access to Justice Day!
Access to justice, and justice for all, requires investment in civil legal services. At its most basic level, civil legal aid works to make sure people know their rights and can enforce them.
Civil legal aid helps keep people housed when a foreclosure or landlord action is improper, helps immigrants secure life-saving protection, helps veterans and others access benefits to which they are entitled, helps keep custody of a child, helps gain access to health care, and much more. Learn more about why Maine must invest more in civil legal aid and follow ILAP @ilapmaine on social media for actions to support in the weeks ahead!
Local Event Spotlight: 45,000 Quilt Project
Check out the 45,000 Quilt Project on display at the Waterville Creates' Ticonic Gallery. Created by 60+ immigrant justice activists and artists, the exhibit calls attention to the massive scope and cruelty of immigration detention in the U.S.
The opening reception is this Friday and the quilts will be on display until February 12th. Proceeds from book sales during the exhibit will benefit our partners at Mano en Mano and Presente! Maine.
ILAP in the News
Amjambo Africa featured an Organization Update from ILAP in a series highlighting organizations that provide support for communities of color in Maine. The series is available in English, Somali, Portuguese, French, Spanish, Kinyarwanda, and Swahili.
The Piscataquis Observer provided information about Maine Community Foundation’s Community Building Grant Program. Last year, funding from this program helped expand ILAP's legal services for people seeking asylum.
ILAP and Akakpo & Co. Bravery Thermos
Akakpo & Co. is once again selling beautiful ILAP thermoses. Featuring the Adrinkra symbol for Bravery, these thermoses embody the bravery of migration, the bravery of starting over, and the bravery of speaking out. For every thermos sold, Akakpo & Co. will donate a portion of the proceeds to ILAP.
Grab an ILAP Bravery thermos for yourself or someone who inspires you to be brave. Your purchase supports ILAP and a local, immigrant-owned business!
