Earlier this month, 24 PICC staff members and leaders from 12 of our partner organizations traveled to Arlington, VA to participate in the 11th annual National Immigrant Integration Conference (NIIC), the largest conference on immigration in the country. It was a busy and empowering three days for these Pennsylvania leaders, who joined more than 1100 other policymakers, business owners, service providers, community leaders, funders, and elected officials from around the country. During the NIIC, participants took advantage of empowering plenary sessions, over 30 workshops on a wide variety of topics, affinity group caucuses for informal networking, film screenings, and more. All left the conference inspired and reenergized to continue working to advance immigrant and refugee rights in Pennsylvania. Below are a couple reactions from some of our participants: Vanessa Griffith, Staff Attorney at Justice at Work, reflected that, “NIIC re-energized me to do the work I do. It was amazing to hear about all the different campaigns, legislation, and actions other cities, counties, and states. I think a lot of people left NIIC feeling like they have the power to make change, I know I personally did.” “As a new hire, NIIC has inspired me and directed me. I now have a toolkit that makes my job more effective, a long-term vision with exciting and obtainable goals, and, most importantly, inspiration when that work feels like too much,” said Laura Perkins, Emergency Response Organizer at Casa San Jose in Pittsburgh Jeimy Ibarra, Youth Community Outreach Coordinator at Casa San Jose in Pittsburgh, said, “NIIC was a true motivation to keep going. I learned about new ways of approaching youth organizing and how to really teach youth about oppression. I also loved hearing all the Latina women in power. Nothing motivates me more than seeing other immigrants succeed.” “The NIIC was a great way to connect with fellow immigration rights advocates from around the country,” affirmed Will Gonzalez, Executive Director of Ceiba in Philadelphia. We are very thankful for all of our donors for your ongoing support of our work. Without you, our leaders would not have been able to take full advantege of this unique opportunity to enhance their capacity to fight for immigrant and refugee rights in their communities. Our movement in Pennsylvania is stronger and much more inclusive because of your support. |