Special Sessions 2021

In addition to the issue area Tracks, NIIC features a number of Special Sessions which may touch on additional topics or address late-breaking developments / emergency response efforts. Like the NIIC Tracks, these sessions are organized by NIIC Stakeholders and vary from year to year.

Please see below for details about the NIIC 2021 Special Sessions.

Monday October 4

Haitian Refugee Crisis: How We Got Here and the Path Forward 

11:00-12:15 PM  

Haiti’s overlapping environmental, socioeconomic and political crisis of the last decade has led to the displacement of 100,000 of Haitians throughout the Western Hemisphere. The horrific scenes in Del Rio, Texas are emblematic of an outdated immigration system that does not reflect or honor the needs of those seeking refuge in our country. Haitian refugees and Black immigrants have long faced racial bias in the asylum process and immigration enforcement. 

We will have a conversation on what led us to this moment and how lawyers, advocates, policymakers and elected officials address the newly arrived Haitian migrants.  

Moderator: 

• Krystina Francois, Executive Director, Office of New Americans of Miami-Dade, FL
  
  

Speakers:

• Guerline Jozef, Executive Director, Haitian Bridge Alliance 

• Tessa Painson, Co-Executive Director,  Florida Immigrant Coalition

• Vanessa Joseph, Esq., Supervising Attorney Catholic Legal Services of Miami 

• Jean-Homer Lauture, Organizing Director, Unite Here Local 100 NY

• Ronald Claude, Director of Policy and Advocacy, Black Alliance for Just Immigration

Census & Redistricting: Redrawing the Boundaries for a Multiracial America

2:45pm-4:00pm

Redistricting efforts are underway across the country and the stakes are high for communities of color. This once in a decade process, informed by the census, ensures accurate representation and the full civic engagement of API, Black, and Latinx communities.  From local city council district mapping to reapportionment of Congressional House and Senate districts, redistricting   presents the opportunity to examine how notions of race and ethnicity come into play as lines are drawn. Panelists will share a brief analysis of the data coming out of the 2020 census and share strategies on how to engage in the redistricting process of accurately representing communities across the U.S. 

Moderator: Petra Falcon, Executive Director, Promise AZ  

Speakers:

• Rahmo Abdi, Community Organizer, Partnership for the Advancement of New Americans, San Diego 

• Maria del Carmen Gutiérrez, Director of Membership, CASA 

• Noe Orosco, Census and Redistricting Coordinator, SIlver State Voices 

• Tom K. Wong, Ph.D. Associate Professor, Department of Political Science, Director, U.S. Immigration Policy Center, University of California, San Diego 

How to Humanize, Not Criminalize: Messaging & Policy at the Intersection of Detention, Deportation & the Criminal-Legal System

2:45pm-4:00pm

Even as recognition grows nationwide that the system of policing, courts, and incarceration is infected by racism at the structural level, this same system remains the primary pipeline to detention and deportation. What do advocates working on other immigrant rights issues need to know about how the entanglement of these systems affects our communities? How can we advance and effectively communicate about inclusive policy approaches? What are harmful frames related to this topic should we rethink? Join this workshop for background information and context on the criminalization of immigrants, as well as key messaging recommendations based on public opinion research. It will include an opportunity for small group interaction. This session will be led by Comm/Unity, a national network of immigrant rights communicators working to end the criminalization of immigrants. The network has developed resources for advocates and journalists, provided communications support to key campaigns, and conducted public opinion research. 

Moderator:

• Jon Rodney, Immigrant Defense Project

Speakers/Presenters: 

• Salvador Sarmiento Campaign Director, National Day Laborer Organizing Network

• Arianna Rosales Senior Communications Manager, National Immigration Project of the National Lawyers Guild

• Jane Shim, Senior Policy Attorney, Immigrant Defense Project

Tuesday October 5

Funding for Immigration: What's Happening Now, What's on the Horizon

10:30am-11:45am

The political, social, and economic landscape for immigrants and refugees during the pandemic and a changing political arena is of key importance to funders, organizers, advocates and service providers. Come hear from a diverse panel of immigrant rights funders about what they are funding and why, what they are optimistic about, and what worries them.  We will conclude with a robust discussion about the future of immigration rights and funding for 2022 and beyond.

Moderator:

• Marjorie Fine, Consultant

Speakers:

• Sheila Bapat, Senior Program Officer, Proteus Fund, Together We Rise

• Rebecca Carson, Director of Inclusion, Four Freedoms Fund

• Jonathan Jayes-Green,Vice President of Programs,  Marguerite Casey Foundation

• Marissa Tirona, President, Grantmakers Concerned with Immigrants and Refugees

The Modern Anti-Immigrant Movement: The Scope of the Threat & What We Can Do About It

10:30am-11:45am

This session will expose the dangers posed by the modern anti-immigrant movement and highlight exciting new efforts to defeat them. This movement is manifested in an entire ecosystem of influential think tanks, litigating organizations, front groups purportedly representing progressive causes, a powerful media machine, and allied elected officials to undermine support for immigration reform while advancing anti-immigrant policies and inaccurate negative narratives about newcomers. Participants will learn about the origins and sources of support for this movement, as well as steps pro-immigrant advocates can take to diminish its effectiveness and reach.

Speakers:

• Hassan Ahmad, Immigration Attorney, HMA Law Firm

• Heidi Beirich, Co-Founder, The Global Project Against Hate and Extremism

• Devin Burghart, President & Executive Director, Institute for Research and Education on Human Rights

• Lola Ibrahim, Executive Director, Migrant, Immigrant & Refugee Rights Alliance 

• ​​Mario H. Lopez, President, Hispanic Leadership Fund