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Spring is around the corner, and this edition of our eNewsletter is devoted to the growing reach of EBCLC's efforts.
As you know, EBCLC is the largest provider of free legal services to the poor in the East Bay and a nationally-recognized teaching clinic for law students. Each year more than 100 law students under the supervision of a dozen EBCLC attorneys serve 4,000 low-income people with critical legal needs in the areas of housing, income, employment, health, economic development, and civic participation.
You may also be aware that in October 2005, EBCLC launched a $3.25 million "Building for Justice" Campaign to house our ambitions to expand services to clients and enhance the teaching of students. With the help of many of you, we expect to close soon on the new building and occupy it before the end of 2006.
Central to EBCLC's service delivery are hundreds of education and outreach clinics and workshops staffed annually by our attorneys, students and pro bono volunteers. Please read on for more details.
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Clean Slate Clinic — Fostering Reentry And Reintegration
At the Alameda County Clean Slate Clinic, EBCLC attorneys and interns provide free legal help to eligible low-income residents in Alameda County who are seeking to clean up their criminal records and overcome barriers to employment, housing, and educational opportunities. The Clean Slate Clinic operates every Tuesday and Thursday at the Alameda County Superior Court Wiley Manuel Self-Help Center and is supported in part by the State Bar of California's Equal Access Fund.
Low-Income Eviction Project — Access To Justice
The Low-Income Eviction Project (LIEP) provides free legal help to low-income tenants facing eviction. LIEP — which also includes assistance to low-income landlords provided by volunteers from the Alameda County Bar Association — is open every Monday and Wednesday at the Alameda County Superior Court Wiley Manuel Self-Help Center and is supported in part by the cities of Oakland, Berkeley, and Emeryville.
Workers' Rights Clinic — Assisting Low-Wage Workers
The Workers' Rights Clinic is hosted every Thursday night at the offices of the East Bay Community Law Center. Boalt students under the training and supervision of attorneys from the Legal Aid Society-Employment Law Center provide advice and counsel to low-wage workers as part of a regional collaborative that includes clinics at Golden Gate and Santa Clara Law Schools. The collaborative is funded by a three-year cy pres distribution from the law firm of Alexander, Hawes & Audet.
Tenants' Rights Workshops — Educating Renters
Our attorneys and volunteers staff two to three Tenants' Rights Workshops each week, providing advice and counsel to low-income renters throughout the East Bay. Workshop volunteers have language capacity in Spanish and Cantonese. The Tenants' Rights Workshops are supported in part by the cities of Oakland, Berkeley, and Emeryville
Suitcase Clinic Legal Services — Expanding Justice
In conjunction with a broad range of service providers, EBCLC students and attorneys staff four drop-in clinics each week for homeless women, families and youth. We advise and assist clients on civil and criminal legal matters that are barriers to stable housing, employment and health care. This project is supported in part by Kaiser Permanente, the West Berkeley Foundation, and the Berkeley Community Fund.
Community Legal Outreach — Overcoming Barriers
For more than ten years, our Community Legal Outreach (CLO) program has trained first-year law students to assist underserved communities in the East Bay. CLO coordinators recruit and train students to conduct outreach visits to shelters, transitional housing sites and health clinics. Each year, CLO students provide basic information and make referrals to more than 1,000 low-income people in need of social and legal services. CLO is supported in part by a grant from the Zitrin Family Foundation.
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These are trying times in our community as resources are stretched thin and the needs of individuals and families continue to grow. As these outreach programs demonstrate — and they represent only a fraction of EBCLC's services — we are committed to advancing justice and expanding opportunity as we train the next generation of lawyers committed to social and economic justice.
Please make a gift by Tax Day to help us take advantage of a generous challenge grant from the Kazan, McClain, Abrams, Fernandez, Lyons, Farrise & Greenwood Foundation, Inc. The firm will match all contributions made by April 15th, 2006 up to a total of $50,000.
With the continued help of our constituents, stakeholders and partners, we will remain on the forefront of innovative, effective advocacy on behalf of clients and communities in need. Our continued success will not be possible without your help.
For more information, including ways to support EBCLC, please visit our website at www.ebclc.org.
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