In 2018, the APALRC’s staff of four attorneys and one program assistant provided legal assistance in 611 legal matters. During 2018, we continued to represent Filipino teachers and Indonesian domestic workers, who we assisted in the process of applying for “green cards.” Concurrently, APALRC staff provided legal representation to victims of trafficking and crime, assisting them in applying for both U and T visas. Additionally, our staff represented 94 victims of domestic violence in 103 legal matters, including obtaining orders of protection against their abusers, and custody and support for their children. During 2018, the APALRC continued to assist the tenant associations of 2 low-income housing complexes in/near the District of Columbia’s Chinatown with preserving their affordable housing. As part of the New Americans Campaign in 2018, the APALRC hosted 12 citizenship application workshops – assisting 141 attendees and completing 82 citizenship applications at the workshops themselves.
In addition to providing direct legal services, the APALRC also conducted 7 Know Your Rights seminars on the topics of debt collection, phone scams, habitability in housing, immigration relief, and the proposed changes to the USCIS’s definition of “public charge.” The APALRC also participated in 4 forums: two on the topic of immigration, one on issues affecting the District’s API community, and one on the topic of domestic violence. In 2018, the APALRC also conducted information sessions for Lawful Permanent Residents (LPR) seeking to apply for U.S. citizenship. Additionally, the APALRC executive director participated in two continuing legal education panels on how language and culture impacts the representation and legal proceedings of the API community.
During 2018, the APALRC distributed a total of 3,211 brochures and flyers at resource fairs sponsored by community-based organizations that work with the API community. In addition, the APALRC continued to conduct walk-in intake hours at the Asian Pacific Islander Senior Center in the District, the Chinese Culture and Community Service Center in Gaithersburg, Maryland, the Korean Community Service Center and Gilchrist Immigrant Resource Center in Montgomery County, Maryland, and the Korean Community Service Center in Annandale, Virginia. Furthermore, in November, the APALRC began conducting “office hours” at the Gilchrist Immigrant Resource Center’s Citizenship Corner, located in the Gaithersburg Library in Montgomery County, Maryland.
