Phoenix Legal Action Network

THE PHOENIX LEGAL ACTION NETWORK (PLAN) WORKS IN SOLIDARITY WITH THE LOCAL IMMIGRANT COMMUNITY TO REIMAGINE JUSTICE IN ARIZONA. WE AFFECT CHANGE IN THE IMMEDIATE TERM BY PROVIDING FREE LEGAL REPRESENTATION AND RESOURCES TO PEOPLE FACING DEPORTATION, IN THE NEAR-TERM BY ADVANCING NARRATIVE CHANGE THROUGH STORYTELLING AND THE ARTS, AND IN THE LONG-TERM BY BUILDING COMMUNITY POWER ALONGSIDE IMMIGRANT-LED ORGANIZATIONS.

NARRATIVE CHANGE: PLAN CREATES OPPORTUNITIES FOR IMMIGRANTS TO TELL THEIR STORIES BECAUSE A BETTER UNDERSTANDING OF PEOPLE'S PERSONAL EXPERIENCES LEADS TO POLICIES THAT CENTER HUMANITY OVER HATE. IN 2022, WE HELD OUR FIRST EVER ENGLISH-SPANISH BILINGUAL IMMIGRANT STORYTELLING AND ART EVENT FEATURING 5 IMMIGRANT ARTISTS AND 4 IMMIGRANT STORYTELLERS, 4 OF WHOM RECEIVED LEGAL SERVICES FROM PLAN. THE ART AND STORIES WERE ALSO DIGITIZED AND USED TO LAUNCH AN ONLINE STORYTELLING SPACE ON OUR WEBSITE. WE ALSO HAVE AN ONGOING BLOG, REMEMBERING OUR ROOTS, WHICH CENTERS AND CELEBRATES THE IMMIGRANT ROOTS OF OUR COMMUNITY.

COMMUNITY POWER BUILDING: LEGAL SERVICES ALONE CAN'T CHANGE THE LAW AND SYSTEMS THAT OPPRESS IMMIGRANT COMMUNITIES. IN 2022, PLAN COLLABORATED WITH THREE LOCAL IMMIGRANT-LED ORGANIZATIONS, TRANS QUEER PUEBLO, PODER IN ACTION, AND ALIENTO TO CREATE LONG-TERM SYSTEMIC AND INSTITUTIONAL CHANGE. WE CO-CREATED PROGRAMS, MATERIALS, AND RESOURCES TO SUPPORT THE LEGAL NEEDS OF THEIR COMMUNITY MEMBERS AND ENSURE THAT LEGAL KNOWLEDGE GROWS AND REMAINS IN THE COMMUNITY. OUR WORK INCLUDED IMPLEMENTING A SPANISH LEGAL CURRICULUM, PROVIDING 1-1 MENTORSHIP TO LOCAL IMMIGRANT LEADERS, AND CO- CREATING A NEW COLLECTIVE, COLLECTIVE CAPULLO, TO DEVELOP A NEW DYNAMIC OF ACCOUNTABILITY AND MUTUAL UNDERSTANDING BETWEEN THE LEGAL PROFESSIONAL AND THE COMMUNITY.

IMMIGRATION LEGAL SERVICES: THE CURRENT LEGAL SYSTEM FAILS TO PROVIDE EQUITABLE ACCESS TO JUSTICE, HARMING IMMIGRANTS AND THEIR FAMILIES. WE BEND THIS BROKEN SYSTEM IN FAVOR OF IMMIGRANT COMMUNITIES BY PROVIDING FREE LEGAL SERVICES TO LOW-INCOME, NON-DETAINED IMMIGRANTS FACING DEPORTATION. IN 2022, WE PROVIDED FREE LEGAL REPRESENTATION TO 50 IMMIGRANTS AND SUPPORTED APPROXIMATELY 200 MORE THROUGH COMMUNITY CLINICS. BECAUSE OF OUR WORK, AN IMMIGRANT MOTHER AND GRANDMOTHER WON LAWFUL PERMANENT RESIDENCE, A SINGLE FATHER AND SURVIVOR OF DOMESTIC VIOLENCE OBTAINED A U VISA, A DREAMER WON PERMANENT RESIDENCE, AND NINE PEOPLE OBTAINED A WORK PERMIT FOR THE FIRST TIME OPENING THE DOORS TO EMPLOYMENT AND GREATER ECONOMIC STABILITY TO THEM AND THEIR FAMILIES.