(WASHINGTON, DC) – Today, Mayor Bowser announced that her Administration will provide Immigrant Justice Legal Services (IJLS) grant funding to 15 community-based organizations that offer legal services for immigrants in Washington, DC. Since launching the program in January 2017, the Mayor has made $500,000 per fiscal year available for the program. In fiscal year 2019, Mayor Bowser increased her Administration’s investment in the program to $900,000.
“Washington, DC is a sanctuary city, and we are committed to protecting the rights and humanity of all our residents,” said Mayor Bowser. “Through the IJLS grant program, we are able to assist hundreds of residents each year with a wide range of issues, expand the reach of important community partners, and advance DC values.”
The IJLS program complements other community grant programs run by the various constituent service offices and the Office of Victim Services and Justice Grants.
The following organizations will receive funding in FY19:
- African Communities Together
- American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee
- Asian Pacific American Legal Resource Center
- Asylum Seeker Assistance Project
- Ayuda
- Briya Public Charter School
- Catholic Charities
- DC Affordable Law Firm
- Human Rights First
- KIND (Kids in Need of Defense)
- LAYC (Latin American Youth Center)
- Legal Aid Society of the District of Columbia
- TASSC (Torture Abolition and Support Survivors Coalition)
- Trabajadores Unidos de Washington, DC
- Whitman-Walker Health
The IJLS grants will support a variety of projects, including grants to organizations that work principally with persons from Central America, Africa, Asia, and the Middle East.
Mayor Bowser’s IJLS program is a national model for providing legal services that relate to immigrant justice. The program has a broad focus touching a wide range of Washingtonians – torture survivors, DACA recipients, unaccompanied minors, survivors of domestic violence, and residents who want a chance to become American citizens