Dear supporters,

2011 was a change-filled year for the Asian Law Caucus–a year of transition.  But as our 40th anniversary approaches, 2012 brings great promise.

Here at the Asian Law Caucus, we witness every day the suffering that the economic crisis brings to the most vulnerable members of our community. In the San Francisco Bay Area and throughout California, incomes are dropping while social service cuts are deepening.

In light of these changes, I’m struck by how the Caucus has remained committed to grassroots, community-based lawyering while balancing this work with making a national impact.

• In October, we hosted the national Advancing Justice Conference in San Francisco, marking the third annual gathering of the API social justice community.  With over 500 participants, the conference drew national and local leaders, attorneys, researchers, advocates, policy makers, journalists, students and others dynamically engaged in leadership and social justice work.

• ALC has taken a lead in local organizing and advocacy to address the growing trend of collaboration between local law enforcement and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), and between local law enforcement and the FBI.  The result is growing surveillance and criminalization of immigrant communities. Domestic violence victims have been taken into ICE custody after reporting crimes to the police and Muslim community members are fearful of attending mosques because the FBI will then follow them to their place of work.  Many of the practices that local police engage in, in collaboration with federal law enforcement, violate local sanctuary ordinances and the California constitution. The Caucus has also participated in national campaigns to seek modifications of these ICE and FBI policies.

• An alarmingly disproportionate number of undocumented youth continue to face deportation, and our grassroots approach was further strengthened in June when we published a toolkit along with DreamActivist.org, Educators for Fair Consideration and the National Immigrant Youth Alliance to help young people advocate for themselves and navigate the nation’s deeply flawed immigration system.  We have represented many of these individuals, who came here as young children, have lived most of their lives in the US and desperately seek a legal pathway to remain in the US and continue contributing to our society. With over 60 pages of legal and organizing support from successful cases, the guide aims to provide DREAM Act eligible students, families, and lawyers with the essentials for deportation defense.

• As the foreclosure crisis continues to deepen, the Caucus continues to work in our local community to represent tenants who are at risk of being evicted due to foreclosure. Staff attorney Omar Calimbas recently won a motion for summary judgment in a post-foreclosure unlawful detainer (eviction) case. The bank was evicting an elderly Chinese couple from the house their son had previously owned but lost in foreclosure. The couple would have nowhere else to go, given their limited fixed income of Social Security benefits. We convinced the court that the tenancy was valid, in which case a landlord would need just cause to evict. The elderly couple was able to stay in their home.

• We relaunched our employment rights program this year. Already, we have obtained hundreds of thousands of dollars in back wages for low-income recent immigrant workers from employers who were violating with wage and hour regulations.

These stories illustrate the work that remains to be done not only with representing individual clients, but by creating positive change with the policies that impact our communities locally and nationwide. It is only with your support that we can continue this much-needed work. As the Caucus moves into celebrating 40 years of defending the civil rights of our community, please consider making a donation today.

Warmest regards,

Hyeon-Ju Rho

Executive Director

P.S. Every gift truly makes a difference. Thank you again for your continuing support.