|
Grateful and blessed are words that come to mind as we close an excellent academic and client service year for the Katharine & George Alexander Community Law Center. Thank you for walking with us through a most unprecedented time. This year, our law students continued to work virtually under the supervision of attorneys, investing more than 5,000 hours of free legal services for low-income individuals with consumer, immigration, and workers’ rights matters. As important, the Law Center’s skill-building experience prepares our students for the legal profession while cementing their commitment to social justice advocacy beyond graduation. Our students are so inspiring; hear below about their transformational experience with the workers’ rights practice, supervised by Professor Ruth Silver Taube. Join us for this year’s Annual Celebration on Thursday, September 30th. In these hope-filled times, it helps to pause, gather together, and give thanks for the privilege of working with community to advance justice. Be well, Deborah Moss West JD ’94 Consider making a gift to keep our programs strong; we’d be quite grateful. LAW STUDENTS ADVANCING JUSTICE FOR WORKERS REMOTELY DURING COVID-19 Workers’ Rights Clinic On Tuesday evenings, students taking the Law Center’s Workers’ Rights Interviewing, Advising, and Mediation Clinic, led by Ruth Silver Taube, gather virtually to provide free legal services to individuals with problems in the workplaces such as wrongful termination, sexual harassment, discrimination, unpaid wages, and failure to pay overtime and to screen for labor trafficking. The work includes educating workers about their rights and responsibilities. Our law students help give voice to those intimidated by the legal system and in many cases, reach amicable solutions with employers. On Thursday evenings, the students learn employment law so they can identify the client’s legal issues; it is inspiring to hear about their work. “It is gratifying to recover wages for our low income, predominantly immigrant clients who are victims of wage theft,” said Ruth Silver Taube. “Recently, a day laborer who came to the Law Center did not receive all the wages he was owed for work he performed for a small construction company. We wrote a demand letter, and the employer paid the worker the day after he received the letter. If it weren’t for the Law Center, many of our clients would be unable to obtain representation and recover unpaid wages.”
“Supervising the Workers’ Rights Clinic and teaching the Workers’ Rights class are rewarding to me. Students enjoy the Clinic so much that they continue to volunteer long after the semester ends and even become volunteer supervising attorney once they pass the Bar. The Clinic and class provide the students with the opportunity to learn an area of law that has become even more important during the pandemic, to network with volunteer supervising employment law attorneys, and to make a difference in the lives of their clients,” says Ruth Silver Taube. The Labor & Employment Law Society Law Student Organization Offered Legal Clinics and More With the support of Professor Ruth Silver Taube (advisor) the Labor & Employment Law Society (LELS) law student organization launched during this academic year. Both the founders of LELS were students in Ruth Silver Taube’s Workers’ Rights Clinic and class. LELS “aims to increase student involvement in the field of Labor and Employment law, contribute to the career decisions of students who are interested in Labor and Employment law, increase awareness and education of employer and workers’ rights, and support the community by way of advocating for workers’ rights.”
LELS certainly had a productive year; the Law Center is so pleased to support the efforts.
Join us in congratulating the Law Center’s Ruth Silver Taube who received much-deserved double-recognition this academic year. The San Francisco Collaborative Against Human Trafficking‘s selection committee chose Ruth Silver Taube JD ’93 as a 2021 Modern-Day Abolitionist Award recipient. The prestigious award honors key leadership on the forefront of protecting the rights and serving the legal needs of human trafficking survivors, as well as work on anti-trafficking education and improvement of the state policies and legislation in the field. Additionally, Ruth Silver Taube was awarded the Filipino Bar Association of Northern California (FBANC) 2021 Trailblazer award for her tireless efforts on behalf of workers and those affected by human trafficking, and in particular the Filipinx community. Of special note is her work with the Pilipino Association of Workers’ and Immigrants (PAWIS). The prestigious award was presented at the FBANC 41 Virtual Installation Gala on June 3, 2021. WELCOME EMILY MONCADA 2021 CINDY AVITIA IMMIGRATION JUSTICE SUMMER FELLOW!
“Listen, learn, and always make sure anything you do in life is filled with compassion and empathy for other living things – is the guiding principle I’ll bring to my work at the Law Center. My passion for becoming a lawyer stems from my family’s experience as Latino immigrants from Central America; they moved to the U.S. in hopes of a better life. I did not ever question whether I wanted to be a lawyer. But there were times I questioned if I had the strength to become a lawyer. Over time, I realized I was strong enough to advocate for people like my family because I had my family’s strength of character, joy, and optimism. I am so thankful for the opportunity to work with immigrant communities with the support of this fellowship.” The fellowship is named in memory of Cindy Avitia ’06, a long-time member of Santa Clara County La Raza Lawyers Association, graduate of Santa Clara Law, passionate advocate for immigrant rights, and former employee of the Katharine & George Alexander Community Law Center. The Law Center is grateful to the La Raza Lawyers of Santa Clara County Charitable Foundation for making this grant possible. Contact Deborah Moss-West JD ’94, dmosswest@scu.edu if you’d like to support a summer fellow in our office.
SAVE THE DATE: ANNUAL CELEBRATION, THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 30th, 2021, 5:00pm Each year, the Law Center holds an event to Celebrate community, commitment, and courage, while also recognizing those who make our work possible. Please save-the-date and watch your email for details on how we will commemorate another year of teaching and service this fall. YOUR VOLUNTEER AND FINANCIAL SUPPORT WILL HELP KGACLC: Interested in volunteering or joining our Advisory Board? Contact Deborah Moss-West or Board Chair Delma Locke to learn more. We would like to hear from you.
Give to the Alexander
Community Law Center
Katharine & George Alexander Community Law Center Phone: (408) 288-7030 | Fax: (408) 288-3581 |
A WORD FROM THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
“This was the first time I had ever written a client demand letter. It was an incredible learning process because initially my knowledge in this area of employment law was limited. I am so thankful the Law Center provided me with the opportunity to help a client assert their rights against a former employer. Participating in the Workers’ Rights program has enriched my law school experience and allowed me to gain practical skills I will use throughout my legal career.” – Vasti Montiel ’22
Darelda Medina’s passion for employment law has deep roots that continued to grow during her time in law school. In addition to gaining hands on experience through the Worker’s Rights Clinic; she has also taken social justice courses to better understand the history, laws, policies and systemic issues connected to discrimination and injustice. Along with a classmate, Darelda conducted original research on a labor human trafficking case for Professor Deborah Moss-West’s Law and Social Justice course; a case that was covered in her Workers’ Rights class. Darelda’s research included interviews with attorneys and advocates involved in the case; the Law Center played a key role. Darelda’s commitment to advancing workers’ rights goes beyond the classroom. “Doing this work validated the reason why I came to law school – to help people in the community – and reinforced my aspiration to practice employment law.”
“My involvement with the Law Center has been an extremely rewarding experience that sparked my interest in employment law. The engagement inspired me to co-found, with co-president Christine Coughlan ’21 and an amazing group of board officers, the LELS in summer 2020,” said Brooke Barranti ’21. In Fall 2020, LELS had the great opportunity to establish its semi-annual employment law clinic, co-sponsored by the Law Center. The first virtual clinic proved successful paving the way for the spring 2021 clinic and future efforts. Through the employment law clinic, the Law Center and LELS have trained over 30 students with an interest in protecting workers’ rights while providing legal advice to over 25 low-income workers. Additionally, LELS hosted several educational panels – topics include labor unions & police, tech unionization, from law student to associate, and what is employment law, to name a few.
Ruth Silver Taube JD ’93 Receives Double Honors This Academic Year
Rising 3L Emily Moncada is the recipient of the Cindy Avitia Immigration Justice Summer Fellowship, established in 2017 through a partnership between the Katharine & George Alexander Community Law Center and La Raza Lawyers of Santa Clara County Charitable Foundation. Emily will receive a grant from the Foundation to work at the Law Center this summer. The goal of the 2021 Fellowship is to provide and expand legal assistance, education, and outreach for immigrant communities.
Thank you
Your feedback has been received.
