Agencia ALPHA

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Virtual Town Hall on the Safe Communities Act

Hello Everyone:

We’ve been advocating tirelessly for the Safe Communities Act for over three years now, because we want immigrants in our Commonwealth to seek help when they need it, without fear that a call to the police or a visit to the ER could lead to ICE detention and deportation. Mistrust of public authorities is so pervasive that many immigrants are avoiding testing or treatment for COVID-19. The pandemic and Black Lives Matter protests together highlight the triple peril faced by Black immigrants: more likely to fall ill to the virus, more likely to be stopped and arrested by police, and more likely to be deported.

Passage of this bill is more critical than ever now. Please join us this TUESDAY, June 23, at 6pm, for a Virtual Town Hall on the Safe Communities Act. Bring friends, family members and fellow activists! We’ll hear stories from community members, enjoy live music, and raise an urgent call to action – to our legislators to pass the SCA this session, and to our fellow state residents to join us in this fight. Justice and safety for immigrants can’t wait!

Speakers include our three legislative sponsors, Sen. Jamie Eldridge, Rep. Ruth Balser and Rep. Liz Miranda; Damaris Velásquez of Agencia ALPHA; Gladys Vega of Chelsea Collaborative; Rev. Joanna Perez of Harvest Ministries; Rev. Dieufort Fleurissaint of Haitian Americans United; former COVID-19 contact tracer Tibrine Da Fonseca; and two impacted members of the immigrant community; and we’ll have live music from Rafael Medina. We’ll also have live interpretation to Spanish (and other languages upon request).

Will you join us? Register here: bit.ly/SCA-23. And help us promote by posting a picture with a SCA sign and the event link! We designed a whole bunch, including ones where you can write your own message with a Sharpie. Print them on 8.5×11″ paper or pose with your tablet!

Safe Communities Virtual Town Hall

Dear Safe Communities Coalition members and allies:

Please join us on Tuesday, June 23 from 6 to 7pm for Safety Can’t Wait: A Virtual Town Hall on the Safe Communities Act!

Stand with immigrant leaders from grassroots and faith communities calling for protection of immigrant rights and health, including Damaris Velasquez of Agencia ALPHA and Gladys Vega of Chelsea Collaborative, together with our lead sponsors Rep Miranda, Sen Eldridge, and Rep Balser!

More details to follow. In the meantime, share our Facebook Event, register at this link, and as always, please share widely! For organizations, please rebrand and resend!

With gratitude from the SCA Steering Committee,


Amy Grunder
Director of State Policy and Legislative Affairs
MIRA Coalition

Safe Communities Act

Dear Safe Communities Coalition members and allies:

Thanks for the terrific response this week! We’ve generated over 11,432 emails to state legislators so far, and that number is growing daily!

We have 6 days left for committee action on this bill, and we need to be louder than our opponents. So if you haven’t yet, use this link to email your legislators and the Public Safety Committee. The Safe Communities Act must advance out of committee by June 1. You know the drill. Please forward this message to your networks.And then join us for Safe Communities Week 3 of Action right here: bit.ly/SCAweekofaction.

Queridos miembros y aliados de la Propuesta del Safe Communities Act:

¡Gracias por una respuesta tan fantástica! Esta semana hemos generado más de 11, 432 emails dirigidos a los legisladores y los números siguen creciendo todos los días. Tenemos solo 6 días más para que el comité toma una decisión sobre esta propuesta y tenemos que asegurarnos que nuestra vos sea más fuerte que la de los que se oponen.

Así es que si todavía no lo han hecho, por favor usen este link:  use this link  para enviarle un email a sus legisladores y al comité de Seguridad Publica. La propuesta del Safe Communities Act debe de salir del comité para el 1ero de Junio. Ya saben lo que deben hacer, favor de re enviar este mensaje entre sus contactos. También puede unirse a nuestras 3 semanas de acciones a través de este link: bit.ly/SCAweekofaction.

Agencia ALPHA: Facing the Fears of Undocumented Immigrants

Stakes are high for immigrants as their fears of filling out the census and accessing health care continue to prevail in the age of COVID-19. 

April 15, 2020

Before COVID-19 hit, Agencia ALPHA was focusing much of its work on encouraging its immigrant constituents, mostly from Latin America and the Caribbean, to complete their 2020 Census forms. It was no easy task, especially after the federal government attempted to add a citizenship question to the census. Even though the question never made it onto the form, just the idea instilled fear in immigrants, especially those who are undocumented. But the stakes couldn’t be higher. The 2020 Census is critical for ensuring adequate federal funding to Massachusetts, shaping congressional districts and understanding the needs of residents.

And, in the time of the coronavirus, it’s almost impossible to convince non-U.S. citizens to participate. “Because people were encouraged to fill out the census online, we were busy finding ways to provide access to the technology they needed,” said Patricia Sobalvarro, the group’s executive director. “But that involved setting up centers with computers, which is no longer feasible. Now, all we can do is remind them by phone that the census really is confidential and tell them that if they don’t fill in the forms, someone will show up at their door.”

A recent Boston Indicators blog carried a chart of the “20 Hardest to Count Cities and Towns in Massachusetts,” and most are those with high immigrant or non-English speaking populations. They include places like Lawrence, Lynn, Malden and, of course, Boston which owes all of its recent growth to immigrants. The problem is that a flawed count affects everyone in those communities.

Another fear undocumented immigrants have is seeking health care because it means interacting with a large agency and thus carries with it the danger of being discovered and deported. Those fears only increased when the federal rule on Public Charge became final in February. The rule makes immigrants who receive Medicaid and other publicly funded benefits, such as food stamps, potentially ineligible for green cards and visas and, in some cases, subjects them to deportation. While the Department of Homeland Security has issued an alert explaining that it “does not restrict access to testing, screening or treatment of communicable diseases, including COVID-19,” immigrants are understandably wary.

Damaris Velasquez speaking at a podium, people behind her holding signs.
Agencia ALPHA co-founder and program director  Damaris Velasquez  speaking about immigrant rights at the State House. (Photo courtesy of Agencia ALPHA)

“I spoke with one woman on the phone who had burned herself in the kitchen, but was afraid to go to a doctor and instead was using home remedies,” said Sobalvarro, who, along with her staff, is working remotely.

While grappling with these and other distressing issues, Sobalvarro and her colleagues were worried about how to continue its important work during this time of crisis. The nonprofit was founded in 2002 by two immigrant women from Guatemala. It’s a faith-based organization that provides programs and services to Latinos to help them reach their social and legal goals.

“We were very fortunate that some funding came through that will keep us going through the summer,” said Sobalvarro. That also meant that 100 percent of the grant from the Boston Foundation’s COVID-19 Fund is going directly to immigrant families to help them make it through this unparalleled crisis.  

This is one in a series of stories about grantees of the Boston Foundation’s COVID-19 Response Fund. These Greater Boston nonprofits are on the front-lines of our community’s response to this crisis. While we are all struggling to cope with the hardships of the coronavirus, these organizations, their leaders and their staff are serving the most vulnerable among us. Boston Indicators, the Boston Foundation’s Research Center, is providing valuable data and analysis for these stories. Visit tbf.org for more on the COVID-19 Response Fund .

Information from:

News from the Boston Foundation ›Agencia ALPHA: Facing the Fears of Undocumented Immigrants

https://www.tbf.org/blog/2020/april/agencia-alpha-covid-blog-20200415

Recursos por desempleo

Recursos en el Internet para aquellas personas que se han quedado sin trabajo y necesitan ayuda sobre derechos laborales, vivienda, acceso a comida y a cuidado médico, NO IMPORTANDO SU ESTATUS MIGRATORIO:   

USCIS Temporary Office Closure Extended

USCIS

Temporary Office Closure Extended until at least April 7


U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services 

On March 18, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services temporarily suspended in-person services at its field offices, asylum offices, and Application Support Centers (ASCs) to help slow the spread of Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19). USCIS offices will reopen on April 7 unless the public closures are extended further. Employees in these offices are continuing to perform mission-essential services that do not require face-to-face contact with the public.

USCIS will continue to provide limited emergency services. Please call the Contact Center for assistance with emergency services.

USCIS field offices will send notices to applicants and petitioners with scheduled appointments and naturalization ceremonies impacted by the extended closure. USCIS asylum offices will send interview cancellation notices and automatically reschedule asylum interviews. When the interview is rescheduled, asylum applicants will receive a new interview notice with the new time, date and location of the interview. When USCIS again resumes normal operations, USCIS will automatically reschedule ASC appointments due to the office closure. You will receive a new appointment letter in the mail. Individuals who had InfoPass or other appointments must reschedule through the USCIS Contact Center once field offices are open to the public again. Please check to see if your field office has been reopened before reaching out to the USCIS Contact Center.   

Education and precautions are the strongest tools against infection. Get the latest facts by visiting the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s COVID-19 website. Continue to practice good health habits, refrain from handshakes or hugs as greetings, and wash hands and clean surfaces appropriately.

USCIS will provide further updates as the situation develops and will continue to follow CDC guidance. Please also visit uscis.gov/coronavirus for updates.