When I began writing this blog post, I was asked “what do you want readers to take away from it?” Immediately I knew my answer: Undocumented people have the right to be in positions of power, to be compensated fairly for their labor, and to be valued for the expertise they bring to the table. Undocumented people deserve much more than we’ve given them.
In this edition, GCIR President Marissa Tirona speaks with Arcenio Lopez, Executive Director of Mixteco/Indigena Community Organizing Project (MICOP). Read on as Arcenio shares his thoughts about building power for Indigenous immigrants, the importance of forging alliances with other Indigenous communities, and how philanthropy can support and strengthen the work of Indigenous migrants.
We find ourselves in a precarious moment for the right to seek asylum in the United States. While advocates continue to push for more inclusive and welcoming state and local policies for immigrants, refugees, and asylum seekers, the fundamental right to seek safety in the U.S. continues to be at grave risk. Though last month’s U.S. Supreme Court decision cleared the way for the Biden administration to rescind the inhumane Migrant Protection Protocols (MPP), also known as “Remain in Mexico,” an array of cruel and ineffective asylum and immigration policies still stand, foremost among them Title 42.
Emerging leader scholarship receipeint, Joél Junior Morales, reflects on his experience at GCIR's 2022 convening in Houston.
As a native-born U.S. citizen working in the movement for immigrant justice, I often reflect on what brought me to this work out of the many social justice issues that demand our attention. Navigating the immigration system alongside my wife who immigrated from Albania to pursue her dreams of a better future opened my eyes to the complex and often challenging immigrant experience in America.
In her second quarterly message of 2022, GCIR president Marissa Tirona shares some of the highlights of GCIR’s recent work, including GCIR’s national convening in Houston in May, grantmaking and learning through the California Dignity for Families Fund, developing a theory of change though the strategic planning process, and partnering with Upwardly Global to advance the economic power of immigrant and refugee women of color.
Upwardly Global—a leading workforce development organization focused on connecting immigrants and refugees to skill-aligned employment—is teaming up with Grantmakers Concerned with Immigrant Refugees (GCIR)—the nation’s philanthropy-mobilizing organization focused on advancing immigrant and refugee justice—to address and dismantle systemic barriers that immigrant women of color face to economic security. The partnership is made possible due to a grant from Pivotal Ventures, and directly aligns with their goal of advancing social progress for women and families in the United States.
As the daughter of a Chinese-Thai father and a Filipina mother, I struggled with stereotypes of Asian American/Pacific Islanders (AAPIs), including being perceived as a “perpetual foreigner.” When I was in kindergarten, my parents offered me the choice of learning Thai or Tagalog. However, my classmates were already teasing me because of my perceived otherness, and I roundly rejected learning another language because I was “American.” I received compliments about how “well” I spoke English. And questions such as “Where are you from?” followed by “Where are you really from?” when my answer was unsatisfactory for my interrogator, started to trigger me.
In her first quarterly message of 2022, GCIR president Marissa Tirona highlights the importance of addressing the root causes of migration; supporting intersectional, transnational, and cross-movement work; and cultivating a thriving and durable immigrant and refugee movement ecosystem.
In this edition, GCIR President Marissa Tirona speaks with Katherine Perez, Director of the Coelho Center for Disability Law, Policy, and Innovation at Loyola Law School. Read on as Katherine shares her thoughts about building power for immigrants with disabilities, working at the intersection of movements, and how philanthropy can support and strengthen the work of immigrants with disabilities.
