WASHINGTON — D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser announced the fifth year of funding for the Immigrant Justice Legal Service (IJLS) grants, awarding $2.4 million to 19 community-based programs that offer legal services for immigrants in the District on Wednesday.
“Our D.C. values are grounded in community and our commitment to supporting and protecting our residents from the threat of intimidation or even deportation,” Mayor Bowser said in a release. “By working with our dedicated coalition of local organizations, we will continue to protect the rights of our immigrant residents and help more residents realize their dream of becoming American citizens.”
The IJLS grant program offers legal services and resources to immigrant residents and their family members. The program complements other community grant programs run by the various constituent service offices and the Office of Victim Services and Justice Grants. The IJLS program also assists residents by offering know your rights workshops. The program targets – but it is not limited to – Green Card holders, torture survivors, survivors of domestic violence, Dreamers, TPS holders, and community members who want a chance to become citizens in the U.S., residents detained by the federal Immigration or Customs Enforcement, and persons wishing to make emergency preparedness plans with their families.
For the fiscal year of 2021, $2.4 million is being allocated to 19 existing community-based organizations. Ayuda has two grant programs receiving awards for legal services and for providing language access services to all grantees for their IJLS work.
The following organizations and programs will receive funding for fiscal year 2021:
- African Communities Together (ACT)
- American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee Research Institute
- Asian Pacific American Legal Resource Center
- Asylum Seeker Assistance Project
- Ayuda: Community Legal Interpreter Bank
- Ayuda: Consultation and Representation Expansion Program
- Briya Public Charter School: Immigration Legal Services and Education for the Briya Public Charter School Community
- CAIR Coalition
- CARECEN
- Casa Ruby: Immigrant Justice Legal Services
- Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Washington: Immigration Legal Services
- DC Affordable Law Firm: DC Comprehensive Immigration Legal Services Project
- DC Volunteer Lawyers Project: Relief: Representation & Legal Advocacy for Immigrant Families
- KIND Inc.: Unaccompanied Immigrant and Refugee Children: Access to Justice and Protection in Washington, DC
- Latin American Youth Center: LAYC Immigrant Justice Program
- Legal Aid Society of the District of Columbia: Immigrants’ Rights Legal Services Project
- Torture Abolition and Survivors Support Coalition International: TASSC Legal Services Program
- Trabajadores Unidos de Washington DC: Adult Workers Immigration Legal Services Resources Project
- US Committee for Refugees and Immigrants: USCRI DC Children’s Legal Services
- Whitman-Walker Health De Colores Legal Access Initiative
