The Community Activism Law Alliance is extremely excited to announce that our first community activism law clinic will open on October 14, 2014 in partnership with Enlace Chicago. The “community activism law clinic” will serve the Little Village community. CALA and Enlace believe that this clinic will provide a valuable, free resource for residents in Little Village. The clinic will be open every Tuesday evening from 5:00pm-8:00pm. Individuals and families who need legal assistance can either walk in during those hours, or schedule an appointment in advance. The Enlace Clinic will also be open every Friday for follow-up appointments.
The Enlace Community Activism Law Clinic will be full-service: providing a wide-range of services from advice, extended assistance, representation, to community legal education. Priority will be given to clients who are low-income residents of Little Village, and whose cases relate to Enlace’s programmatic areas: violence prevention, immigration, housing, and education. Legal services, including full representation, will be completely free of charge to clients. Additionally, the Enlace Clinic will support Enlace’s DACA (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals) processing workshops.
Enlace Chicago is a grassroots, community organization dedicated to making a positive difference in the lives of the residents of the Little Village community[LH1] by fostering a physically safe and healthy environment in which to live and by championing opportunities for educational advancement and economic development. The Little Village community continues to be one of Chicago’s most densely populated neighborhoods with a high percentage of youth. However, it also continues to be one of the communities with the least amount of green space per capita. The working-class residents of the Little Village community quietly support the way of life of all Chicagoans. Its residents staff restaurants throughout the city. They provide daily assistance as laborers in industries like manufacturing, landscaping, service, and construction. Yet its residents do not have access to the same opportunities available to those who employ them. Neighborhood schools fall below state standards. Children play on the streets due to a lack of parks, playgrounds, and green space. Residents must consistently face the violence that sporadically erupts between gangs. Enlace Chicago works to improve these conditions through a preventative and proactive approach, including education, organizing, and that strengthens families, the neighborhood, and thereby, the city. Through four program areas: community education, community & economic development, organizing & advocacy, and violence prevention, Enlace Chicago directly serves more than 8,000 youth and adults annually.
For further information about the Enlace Community Activism Law Clinic, please contact us at cala@calachicago.org or 312-999-0056.
