Brief Overview of Today's Nonprofits in Discrimination
We Also interviewed Melanie Shakarian, and learned about the Legal Aid Society, and their fight for social justice through litigation.
Race:
The authors of the Declaration of Independence outlined a bold vision for America: a nation in which there would be equal justice for all. More than two hundred years later, it has yet to be achieved. Along with the many sectors of social injustice, racial discrimination has become a prevalent occurrence in today’s society. Numerous world shaking events, like the murder of George Floyd and Asian Hate have become just a few of many evident examples of how members of society perceive different races and cultures. These events also show the great amount of change still yet to be made.
Gender & Sexuality:
Discrimination and other forms of inequality among the American society have been and continue to be seen as a prominent occurrence in our everyday lives. Differences in gender, sexual orientation and sexual identity fuel the divide among the people within this country as controversies and disagreements on this issue continue to rise. We as a country fight for what is right and against the injustices bestowed upon the oppressed, but the problem is that even though we fight, this county refuses to show substantial change and acknowledgement. We still have individuals in the LGBTQ community facing discrimination in their workplace, in their homes, out in public and so much more. We have state governments still arguing over if women should have the right to abortion even though everyone should have the right over their bodies. We have women being abused and education being denied based on who you identify as or who you choose to love. There shouldn’t be an argument involving aspects of life that no one has control over. You can’t choose the gender or sexual orientation you identify as so why are we disagreeing and having stereotypes that women are weak or being a part of the LGBTQ+ community is a sin? The way we view others who aren’t part of the majority’s view of perfection of the ‘ideal’ citizen as less than or inferior is a mindset that needs to be erased.
Immigration:
Immigration has been a deeply controversial topic in America, especially in the 2016 election and subsequent presidency of Donald Trump,who had proposed building a wall that “Mexico would pay for”, which was one of the main proposals that led to his victory. During his presidency, Trump reduced asylum for immigrants, and as some opponents put it, kept kids in cages, while they were separated from their parents in detention centers. While many already find this to be a form of discrimination, as these “illegal immigrants”, so put in quotes as they may be appealing legally for asylum and are thus immigrating legally, are treated as animals in a sense that need to be locked up, immigrants still face other forms of discrimination and hardship. Many immigrant children experience bullying in school, while adults can face discrimination in employment through hiring, promotion, discharge, pay, fringe benefits, job training, classification, referral, and other aspects. Rights to essential services like healthcare and housing are also major concerns for immigrants and refugees.
Legal Aid Society:
"We are a private non profit. We try to help as many people as we can on the civil side of our justice system. We have four main goals at legal aid: we are here to ensure safety and health; we are here to promote education and economic stability; we provide access to housing and stable housing; and then fourth and finally we are here to ensure the government and justice systems are held accountable for our client community, and are accessible to our client community." - Interview with Melanie Shakarian
"We work really hard to educate key community partners to make referrals to us because when we can team up with another source provider on a case, the outcomes of our case are that much more sustainable and long lasting because there are two professionals working and its not just us.
Separate from that we do a lot of community outreach presentations. we do printed materials, flyers, we have very close relationships with our public libraries, who do a great job of passing out literature. Of late, food banks have been very helpful, especially when we were shut down [due to COVID] and people couldn't pick up stuff at their church or the library." - Interview with Melanie Shakarian
"For us the way that we fight and promote social and racial justice is through our unique skills as attorneys"... "We believe strongly that there are ways to use the judicial system to fight for justice and change." - Interview with Melanie Shakarian
