Amaha Kassa is founder and Executive Director of African Communities Together, a membership organization of African immigrants and their families with chapters in New York and Washington, DC. Amaha has worked as a labor and community organizer since 1994. Previously, he was Executive Director of East Bay Alliance for a Sustainable Economy in Oakland, California. He earned his law degree from UC Berkeley and his Master’s in Public Policy from Harvard Kennedy School. Amaha is an immigrant from Ethiopia.
Jirmanus, Lara
Dr. Lara Jirmanus is a family physician at the Cambridge Health Alliance, a Fellow at the FXB Center at the Harvard T. H. Chan School of Public Health (HSPH) and a Clinical Instructor at Harvard Medical School. In February 2017, she founded the Health and Law Immigrant Solidarity Network, a group of over 200 healthcare and legal professionals and community organizations supporting immigrants in Eastern Massachusetts. Her current research focuses on impact of immigration enforcement on immigrant health in the Massachusetts, and the health of Syrian refugees and host populations in Lebanon.
Hadler, Max
Max Hadler is the Director of Health Policy at the New York Immigration Coalition. He works on a range of issues and campaigns at the city and state levels to improve health access, coverage, and delivery for immigrant communities. Previously, he worked in many capacities related to access to care for immigrants, including project director and research associate at the UCLA Center for Health Policy Research, researcher at the UCLA North American Integration and Development Center, and Spanish-English medical interpreter at Yale-New Haven Hospital.
Gutierrez, Araceli
Araceli Gutierrez is a policy advisor at Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck, where she leverages her significant policy and public health expertise for the firm’s health care and pro bono clients. She joined Brownstein from a top-ranked public affairs firm, where she provided guidance on strategic development, research and analysis, and developed creative solutions to navigate complex legislative and regulatory goals for her clients. Araceli began her career in Washington as a Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute graduate health fellow with Rep. Lucille Roybal-Allard (D-CA), where she staffed the congresswoman on the House Appropriations Labor, Health and Human Services Subcommittee.
Guerra, Luis
Luis Guerra is a Strategic Capacity Officer for Catholic Legal Immigration Network, Inc. (CLINIC). Prior to working at CLINIC, Guerra was involved in developing the legal capacity of farm worker-serving organizations. He was the acting Executive Director at Causa Oregon, a statewide immigrant rights organization where he developed Causa's first legal services program. Most recently, he was Director of Operations at the United Farm Workers Foundation as it grew into one of the largest and most successful legal services immigration programs in the country. Guerra holds a Bachelor's Degree from Willamette University.
Fernández-Peña, Jose Ramon
José Ramón Fernández-Peña, MD, MPA, is the director of Health Professions Advising at Northwestern University, where he leads efforts to support students interested in pursuing careers in the health sector. He is the founder and executive director of the Welcome Back Initiative and founding member of the steering committee of the IMPRINT coalition. He has advised the White House Domestic Policy Council on the economic integration of foreign-trained professionals and has served as an expert panelist on this topic at national and international forums.
Doxsee, Catrina
Catrina Doxsee is a Research Assistant at the Migration Policy Institute’s National Center on Immigrant Integration Policy. She conducts research and policy analysis to promote the successful long-term civic, economic, and linguistic integration of immigrants and refugees with a focus on adult education and workforce development policy. Catrina holds an M.A. from Johns Hopkins University’s School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS) and a B.A. from the University of Chicago.
Aria, Yanira
Yanira Aria, a native of El Salvador and a TPS holder, is the National Campaigns Manager for Alianza Americas. She leads the TPS advocacy, house-to-house outreach, SOMOS / We Are anti-racism programming, and other key campaigns. She also brings more than a decade of experience in the field of public health, with special expertise in community mobilization and participation, community organizing, and capacity building to address health disparities and social justice issues. Yanira graduated from the University of El Salvador in 1996 with a focus on journalism. Yanira is based in the Bay Area of northern California.
Anderson, Yende
Yende Anderson, JD, manages the International Medical Graduate Assistance Program at the Minnesota Department of Health, where she oversees the support services, assessment process, and medical residency funding provided by state government to increase the number of immigrant physicians who enter medical practice in Minnesota. Previously, she was executive director of New Americans Alliance for Development, where she led the grassroots effort to create the IMG Assistance Program. She serves on the board of Immigrant Hope, which equips church members to provide low cost immigration legal services.
Vazquez, Laura
Laura Vazquez is the Senior Program Manager for Immigration Initiatives at UnidosUS, working with the organization’s affiliates to expand and sustain their immigration legal services programs. Previously at UnidosUS, she conducted legislative and administrative advocacy to advance just and humane reforms to the current immigration system. Prior to UnidosUS, she served as a constituent caseworker for Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton, assisting D.C. residents with their immigration applications. Laura holds an MA in Latin American Studies from the University of California, San Diego and a BA in Political Science and Spanish from Kenyon College.
Moore, Theodore
Theodore Moore is the Director of Local Policy and Legislation at the New York Immigration Coalition, where he supports the development of local and regional campaigns. He previously worked as a Senior Policy Analyst for former NYC Council Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito in the Policy & Innovation Division, as well as with the Restaurant Opportunities Center United, the Alliance for a Greater New York, and the Working Families Party. Theo is also a founding member of New Kings Democrats, a reform political organization in Brooklyn and serves as a board member of the Riders Alliance, a transit advocacy organization.
Movahedi, Kasra
Kasra Movahedi is Director of the International Rescue Committee’s Center for Economic Opportunity (CEO), which offers refugees and other low-income immigrants access to affordable credit to buy cars, start businesses, pay for education, and establish a credit history. Previously, he served as IRC’s Deputy Director in San Diego, responsible for overseeing direct-service programs, including Resettlement, Health, Youth, Food Security, Immigration. Kasra holds BSBA in Economics and an MA in International Business from the University of Florida and is a fluent Farsi-speaker.
Gebremedhin, Katherine
Katherine Gebremedhin is the Director of Partnerships and Program Development at WES Global Talent Bridge. She is responsible for developing, strengthening partnerships, and collaborating on programmatic initiatives with community-based organizations, government agencies, and academic institutions that work to help immigrant communities successfully integrate into academic and professional settings. Previously, Katherine worked in various capacities in the refugee resettlement sector. She received her BS in Political Science from Eastern Michigan University and her MA in Education and International Development for the University of Leeds.
Feliz, Wendy
Wendy Feliz is the Director of Communications Programming at the American Immigration Council where she creates multidisciplinary, audience-centered communication strategies. She is working to build a broad coalition of groups and individuals who share the goal of creating inclusive and welcoming communities across America.
Dean, Jaclyn
Jaclyn Dean is the Policy Manager at the National Asian Pacific American Women's Forum, where she drives the organization's policy advocacy efforts. Prior to joining NAPAWF, Jaclyn served as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Morocco and also worked for Annie's List in Texas to help elect pro-choice women in Texas. Jaclyn holds a Master in Public Policy from Harvard University's Kennedy School of Government and a B.A. in political science and sociology from Rice University.
Otero Bracco, Carola
Carola Otero Bracco is the Executive Director of Neighbors Link. Under her leadership, the organization has quadrupled in size and has become a leader in community-based, bilingual educational and cultural awareness training programs. Previously, Carola spent 12 years working in financial management with General Electric Corporation, Ford Motor Company and Time Warner. She holds an MBA from Duke University and serves on the boards of Northern Westchester Hospital, the National Council for Workforce Education, Nonprofit Westchester, and the New York Immigration Coalition.
Ward, Eric K.
Eric K. Ward a long time civil rights strategist, is the Executive Director of Western States Center (WSC). Based in the Pacific Northwest and Mountain States, WSC works nationwide to strengthen inclusive democracy by building movement, developing leaders, shifting culture and defending democracy. From 2014 – 2017, Eric worked as a Ford Foundation Program Officer, where his grant-making supported efforts to combat inequality. Prior, he was the Program Executive for The Atlantic Philanthropies, U.S. Reconciliation and Human Rights Programme, United States and led the foundation’s grantmaking efforts in immigration and in support of American Muslim, Arab and South Asian communities. Eric is a 2018-2019 Open Society's New Executive Fellow and currently serves on the board of directors of Proteus Fund and the artist driven, Revolutions Per Minute (RPM).
Sarsour, Linda
Linda Sarsour is a board member of the Women’s March, the Executive Director of the Arab American Association of New York, co-founder of MPowerChange and Muslims for Ferguson, and a member of Justice League NYC. She has won numerous awards, including being recognized as of one Time Magazine’s 100 most influential people in the world in 2017. A Brooklyn-born Palestinian-American-Muslim racial justice and civil rights activist, community organizer, social media maverick, and mother, she has been at the forefront of major social justice campaigns in NYC and nationally, and is a frequent media commentator on issues impacting Muslim communities, Middle East affairs, criminal justice reform. She is widely recognized for her transformative intersectional organizing work and movement building.
Jayapal, Pramila
Pramila Jayapal is the Congresswoman representing Washington’s 7th District. The first Indian-American woman in the US House of Representatives, Jayapal has spent the last 20 years working internationally and domestically as a leading national advocate for women’s, immigrant, civil, and human rights. She is the Vice Ranking Member of the House Budget Committee and also serves on several Committees including the Judiciary Committee and the Subcommittee on Immigration and Border Security, as numerous Caucuses, including those on immigration, LGBT equality and for Asian Pacific Americans. She was first elected to public office as a Washington State Senator in 2014, becoming the first South Asian American ever elected to the State Legislature and the only woman of color in that body. Prior she was the founding and longtime Executive Director of Hate Free Zone (now OneAmerica) and led the national coalition We Belong Together. Jayapal came to the US by herself at the age of 16 to attend college at Georgetown University and later received her MBA from Northwestern University.
Avila, Zorayda
Zorayda Avila is the Capacity Building and Outreach Manager and Director of the Leadership Institute for Alianza Americas, a network of immigrant-led organizations. Prior to joining Alianza Americas, she served as Executive Director for the cultural and education center Casa Michoacán in Chicago. She is a founder of the Transnational Women’s Collective, a bi-national organization bringing together women leaders from the US and Mexico. Avila holds an undergraduate degree from the Universidad de Morelia in Psychology.