ATTORNEY LEGAL ADVISORY
December 10, 2023
Oakland, CA
Contact: AJ
legal@amwftrust.org
(510) 394-4501, (510) 394-4101
FROM: Aaron & Margaret Wallace Foundation, Abdul-Jalil al-Hakim
DATE: December 10, 2023
RE: AMWF Human Civil Rights Committee (HCRC) IMMEDIATELY Needs Legal Observers, Attorney Representation for UNHOUSED in Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity (FHEO) Housing Authority Discrimination, Housing Choice Voucher Discrimination Complaints, Housing Authority and Landlord Inspection Discrimination, Auto and Renters Insurance Discrimination and Bad Faith.
“As lawyers, we have an obligation to use the special skills we’ve been given to give back to the community and minimize homelessness as best we can.”
Judge Jay Zainey
Dear Counselor,
The Aaron & Margaret Wallace Foundation originated the Human Civil Rights Committee (HCRC) that enlists Attorneys, law students, and law firm secretaries and paralegals throughout Northern California to provide pro bono legal assistance to Unhoused and Recently Unhoused/Homeless individuals.
This assistance often takes the form of a single consultation but occasionally extends further, depending on the clients’ needs.
Among other things, the Law establishes standards for service providers and sets forth the responsibilities and rights, including due process protections, of the community members who participate in the covered programs. Anyone who is either homeless, at risk of becoming homeless, has temporary housing/in a shelter, or was recently placed in housing who STILL needs legal assistance.
The HCRC Legal Clinic envisions a just and inclusive community for all residents of throughout Northern California, where housing is a human right and where every individual and family has equal access to the resources they need to thrive.
The AMWF/HCRC’s Legal Clinic with the support of volunteer attorneys, law firms, corporate legal departments, law students, paralegals, law firm secretaries and other legal services entities partners with service and shelter providers and matches pro bono attorneys to provide advice, advocacy, and representation to those MOST IN NEED on a wide range of matters and issues related to immigration, bankruptcy, end of life planning, veterans disability, homelessness, micro-entrepreneurship, homeownership preservation, the receipt of public benefits and other legal challenges to bring needed legal services to people living in unhoused conditions or shelters that those struggling with poverty face.
We partner with religious organizations, service organizations, shelters, and outreach organizations that provide other services to the homeless population where our volunteers meet with their clients at shelters and those other social service organizations that are accessible to the unhoused/homeless population.
More than 50,000 people, including over 15,000 children, sleep in the counties homeless shelters each night. Of those experiencing homelessness, the overwhelming majority come from communities historically deprived of equal access to stable housing and employment due to structural racism.
These historic socioeconomic factors, combined with today’s high cost of housing, food, transportation, clothing, Wi-Fi, cell service, and other necessities create barriers for individuals residing in shelters to achieve stability and independence. AMWF/HCRC primarily assists families experiencing homelessness and those who have exited shelter to secure state and federal public benefits that are vital tools in poverty prevention and alleviation. AMWF/HCRC advocates also contest denials of Cash Assistance and Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits, and shelter, public housing, and rental assistance supplements. AMWF/HCRC aims to help families in shelter and those who have left shelter on the road to economic and housing stability.
Our mission is to use the law to make justice a reality for our neighbors who struggle with homelessness and poverty. Combining community lawyering and advocacy to achieve our clients’ goals, our expert staff and network of volunteer attorneys provide low barrier, comprehensive legal services at intake sites throughout Northern California, helping our clients to access housing, shelter, and life-saving services. Rooted in the experiences of this client work, we effectively blend system reform efforts, policy advocacy, community education and client engagement to advocate for long term improvements in local and federal programs that serve the low- and no-income community.
Working with religious organizations, service organizations, and local shelters, AMWF/HRCR will establish a regularly scheduled clinic to offer free legal services to homeless individuals, provided by volunteer attorneys from firms around the city. Our clients often have many of the same types of legal issues that any other individual might encounter, but they lack access to the justice system simply because they have no attorney to advocate for them.
In many cases, the problem that is preventing the individual from applying for a job, seeking benefits to which he or she is entitled, or obtaining housing is something that a lawyer is able to resolve in a matter of hours, or by making a few simple telephone calls. Other cases are more complicated and require follow up representation, but in most instances the individual’s legal problem is resolved, and what had been a major obstacle in their lives is no longer a problem.
In addition to legal representation, HRCR involves law students, paralegals, and law firm secretaries who volunteer their time, skills, and services to assist the homeless. Law students assist clients in applying for social security or veteran’s benefits by helping them to complete the application forms, obtaining required medical records and other documents, and accompanying clients to the agency office to complete the process. Paralegals and secretaries not only assist the volunteer attorneys, but also provide notary services to certify copies of driver licenses, identification cards, and other important documents.
In cities throughout the country, there are amazing organizations dedicated to helping the homeless every single day. They provide shelter and food, of course, but they also provide so much more: job training and placement services, clothing, counseling, drug and alcohol rehabilitation, transportation to work or school, schooling and child care. They provide a lifeline of security in a harsh and often unfriendly world. The individuals who operate these organizations are not just administrators. They are friends, counselors, parents, protectors and encouragers. AMWF/HRCR salutes their selfless dedication, and is grateful for their partnership with us.
Issues AMWF/HRCR Addresses
• Identification Documents
AMWF/HCRC’s Legal Clinic began its outreach by helping homeless individuals maintain valid identification documents. Because identification is essential for the homeless to access services like shelters and non-emergency hospital care, this service continues to be an important part of the assistance that AMWF/HCRC’s Legal Clinic volunteers provide.
Homeless individuals’ identification documents are often stolen, lost, or taken by the police during an arrest, and many have trouble navigating document replacement processes that can take up to 30 days. Working with AMWF/HCRC’s Legal Clinic volunteers speeds up the process dramatically, allowing these individuals to utilize important social services. Certified copies of their identification documents are maintained at the shelter so that if the original is lost, a certified copy is readily available.
• Child Custody Issues
• Child Support Issues
• Creditor/Debtor Law
• Disability Law
• Driver License Suspensions
• Government Benefits
• Immigration Law
• Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity (FHEO) Housing Authority Discrimination
• Housing Choice Voucher Discrimination Complaints
• Housing Issues, including Housing Authority and Landlord Inspection Discrimination
• Landlord/Tenant Law
• Auto and Renters Insurance Discrimination and Bad Faith
• Minor criminal and traffic violations
Abdul-Jalil directs the AMWF/HCRC Legal Clinic for the Homeless and is the program coordinator. He is a longtime leading advocate in providing pro bono legal services, from spearheading the legal response to developing innovative solutions to the emerging legal needs of those MOST in need today.
PLEASE ENLIST YOUR SUPPORT TODAY! Contact us at: legal@amwftrust.org, (510) 394-4501, (510) 394-4101
When you support our work, you become our partner in making justice a reality for those who have struggled with the injustice of homelessness.
Thanks for your time and consideration.
We are ready, willing and prepared to consult and partner with those LEGITIMATELY CONCERNED in power to facilitate the basis to better understand the impact that they have made, even those that may have been negative, propose advancements and prohibitions with referrals and recommendations the legislature can take into consideration.
Can you PLEASE give us/them some guidance and representation, or perhaps direct us to someone that can if you can’t help them? We will await your communication.
Respectfully,
Abdul-Jalil
510-394-4501