Page 18 - Sonoma County Gazette Sept 2017

[Note to Readers: Below is Part Three of Three: re: Free Law Clinics offered through Empire College School of Law. My “regular” Q & A column will resume next month.]
Disability Law Clinic:
‘The Immigrants on Welfare’ Myth
Some of us may have experienced a physical or mental challenge that sets us back...that nasty fall that broke our shoulder, perhaps a surprise diagnosis of cancer, or (knock on wood) that inattentive driver who ran the light, resulting in broken bones and indescribable pain. Others may have been born, or later “inherited”, a life-changing condition, such as Lou Gehrig’s disease or the inability to hear or see. But what happens if your medical condition is so severe that you are unable to work? Without an income flow, the proverbial downward spiral can begin, and then overcome the person...no work, no food, no home, no transportation--no hope.
Last month, while introducing his proposed law to slash legal immigration, Donald Trump asserted that undocumented immigrants come to the U.S. and“immediately” get on welfare. This is yet another of the myths about immigrants and immigration so prevalent in our society and underlying much of the Trump Administration’s immigration agenda. Here are the facts:
Fortunately, the Disability Services & Legal Center (“DSLC”) is alive and well. Armed with a talented and devoted cadre of attorneys, paralegals, and staff, they can help an individual travel through the maze of complex disability laws. Whether it is assistance with applying for Social Security Disability benefits, knowing your housing rights, or mobility-related issues, DSLC is here to help. For 17 years, Empire Law School has offered “clinical hours” to upper law school students to help at DSLC.
• Undocumented immigrants do not qualify for any of the major federal public assistance programs, such as Supplementary Security Income (SSI), Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP, formerly known as food stamps), Medicaid (including Obamacare) and Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF).
“Our clinical program is unique in that the law student actually presents the case to the court”, comments Adam Brown, supervising attorney and Executive Director of DSLC. “The law student garners the experience of a first-year associate, from preparing the witnesses and client, submitting a brief, and arguing the case to an administrative law judge. Law school can be very abstract”, quips Adam Brown, “Our clinic pulls it all together for the law student. The law student becomes very attached to the client. They truly fight for their clients”.
• In fact, to obtain a green card, you must have a sponsor who will testify, and provide proof, that he or she has enough money to support you, if you are unable to support yourself. Even if somehow you do obtain benefits, the government can seek reimbursement of those amounts from your sponsor.
Walk-in hours are offered every Monday at 1:30 pm (excluding holidays) as an opportunity to meet with staff to field questions, set up future appointments, or to make referrals as necessary. DSCL is located at 521 Mendocino Avenue in Santa Rosa (across from the Trek Bicycle Store). Ph.: 707-528-2745.
Generally speaking, immigrants come to work and to reunite with family members, not to get welfare and government assistance.Immigrant labor-force participation is consistently higher than native-born, and immigrant workers make up a larger share of the U.S. labor force (12.4%) than they do the U.S. population (11.5%). Moreover, studies consistently find that immigrants use proportionately fewer public services to the amount of taxes they pay, and stay in their jobs much longer than persons born here.
Legal Aid Clinic:
This has been my experience in my 25 years working with immigrants. Over and over again, Sonoma County business owners have come to my law office – farmers, winery owners, restauranteurs, construction contractors. They entreat me to find a way to legalize their Mexican-born employee because, they tell me, he or she is “the best worker I’ve ever had”. I’m told that American citizens often don’t want their jobs because it typically involves back-breaking labor in the fields, cleaning houses or offices, or other difficult work. (A future column will explain why, due to our broken immigration system, legalizing is usually impossible for the undocumented.)
Legal Aid hold a special place in my heart. One of my first legal-related jobs was with Legal Aid in West Virginia. It was the summer between my first and second year of law school, back in 1980 when the world seemed a little simpler, but the needs of the underserved just as vital. Never before had I witnessed a people so in need, nor so grateful, in that small coal-mining community.
Today, Legal Aid of Sonoma County serves a vital and crucial role as the gatekeeper to Justice. Under the able leadership of Ronit Rubinoff (who was recently named as “Women of the Year in Sonoma County by Rep. Mike Thompson), law students at Empire Law School can also get a glimpse of what I experienced decades ago. Law students have the opportunity to participate in court representation, interview clients, and prepare pleadings, as well as learning valuable client triage skills.
There is no more inspiring people to work for than our immigrant community. Many of my clients have absolutely nothing going for them – they have no formal education, no family here, no savings, no inheritance, none of the benefits of citizenship. And yet, virtually all of them find a way to make a living and support their family. Our undocumented immigrants are generally the least “entitled” people in our society.
Legal Aid predominately represents low-income residents on issues such as Restraining Orders, Elder Abuse, Landlord/Tenant (Evictions and Habitability issues) and Guardianships for abused or neglected children. Potential clients can come to Legal Aid from 9:15 to 11:30 am and 1:15 to 4:00 pm on Mondays, Tuesdays, and Thursdays. On Wednesdays, only morning hours are held (9:15 to 11:30 am). Legal Aid is located at 144 South E Street, Suite 100 in Santa Rosa. PH: 707-542-1290. Seniors can call 707-340-5610 and potential housing clients can call 707-843-4432.
Historically, it has been common for immigrants to our country to be “branded” as lazy or dependent on the government, without basis in fact. In the late 19th century and early 20th century, immigrants from European countries like Ireland, Italy and Poland were accused of “lacking the proper work ethic.” Similar false myths were used as a basis for race-based restrictions the U.S. imposed on immigration from Asia, Africa and Latin America in the mid-20th century. Even native Americans – the group with the longest relationship to this land – have been victims of these racial and ethnic slurs.
As I close this three-part series of the six legal clinics manned by the law students of Empire Law School, I am reflective on just how lucky we are to have this valuable resource in our community. Given the statewide problem of a steady decline in court funding more pressure is placed on the local legal clinics. Perhaps the Dean of Empire Law School, Mike Mullins, sums it up best, “Sooner or later there will be more people coming to our clinics to achieve the needs they need to achieve. My biggest worry is that people will lose their faith in Justice”.
Now, many inside and outside the Trump Administration are reviving these claims -- arguing that our recent immigrants are abusing welfare and not paying taxes, essentially taking more than they give to our society. It is part
of the greater narrative that immigrants are the cause of many of our national problems – unemployment and low wages, crime in the streets, and even terrorist attacks against our homeland.
With the activity of devoted law students, under the supervision of licensed and experienced local attorneys, I suspect (and hope) that the underserved will have a fighting chance to get the Justice they deserve.
These claims have no more factual basis than similar “alternative facts” that our ancestors faced 100 years ago.
18 - www.sonomacountygazette.com - 9/17
Christopher Kerosky is a member of the Human Rights Commission for SonomaCounty. He is an attorney who practices law in Santa Rosa.
• Due to federal legislation passed in the 1990s, undocumented immigrants and even most non-citizens legally here are severely restricted from obtaining public benefits.
• Even immigrants who have permanent residence here (green cards) generally do not qualify for any of these programs until they have worked here for 5 years.
• As the Cato Institute found, “low-income non-citizen adults and children generally have lower rates of public benefit use than native-born adults or citizen children whose parents are also citizens”