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<h1 class="entry-title">City seeks diverse pool of applicants for new immigrant commission</h1>
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<div class="gmail-td-post-author-name"><div class="gmail-td-author-by">By</div> <a href="https://tacomaweekly.com/news/city-seeks-diverse-pool-of-applicants-for-new-immigrant-commission/">Andrew Fickes</a><div class="gmail-td-author-line"> - </div> </div> <span class="gmail-td-post-date"><time class="entry-date gmail-updated gmail-td-module-date" datetime="2018-02-08T12:14:13+00:00">February 8, 2018</time></span> <div class="gmail-td-post-comments"><a href="https://tacomaweekly.com/news/city-seeks-diverse-pool-of-applicants-for-new-immigrant-commission/#respond"><i class="gmail-td-icon-comments"></i>0</a></div> <div class="gmail-td-post-views"><i class="gmail-td-icon-views"></i><span class="gmail-td-nr-views-11527">39</span></div> </div>
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<p><span class="gmail-wpsdc-drop-cap">T</span>acoma City Council has extended
the application deadline for its recently established Commission on
Immigrant and Refugee Affairs to Feb. 12, allowing for extra time to
attract community residents to fill 11 positions and one alternate
position.</p>
<p>The 11 positions will include one youth or young adult under the age
of 25. Interviewing applicants is scheduled for 4:30 p.m. on Thursday,
Feb. 22, after which City Council will nominate and appoint by a
majority vote. The Council desires that commission members are
reflective of the “diversity and national origin of the immigrant and
refugee communities,” according to the city website. Commission members
will serve a three-year term.</p>
<p>“We are seeking residents of Tacoma from various backgrounds and
experience with the issues affecting immigrants and refugees,” said
Alison Beason, senior policy analyst for the City of Tacoma’s Office of
Equity and Human Rights. “There is a misconception that there is a
required skill set or education level for civic engagement. The City of
Tacoma needs residents who have a passion for change and/or to
participate in their local government activities.”</p>
<p>The City’s journey toward developing this commission started in 2014
when the Council expressed a desire to make the city a more welcoming
and immigrant friendly city. Beason said the City made it official when
it joined the Welcoming Cities and Counties Initiative (Resolution
39116).</p>
<p>“This movement encouraged communities across the United States to
maximize opportunities for economic growth and cultural vitality,”
Beason said.</p>
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<p>The Council took the next step of establishing the Immigrant and
Refugee Affairs Task Force. Composed of more than 30 members
representing a variety of ethnicities, the task force helped the City
identify the needs of the immigrant and refugee community and
recommended three priorities to the Council and former Mayor Marilyn
Strickland.</p>
<p>The three priorities were to establish a deportation defense fund, a
language access policy, and form a permanent commission on immigrant and
refugee affairs.</p>
<p>In regard to the deportation defense fund, the City last October made
an initial allocation of $50,000 to start the fund. Beason said that to
date, the City has received more than $2,000 in community donations.
The City is now conducting an active search for an entity to administer
the contracts for legal services to help individuals facing possible
deportation.</p>
<p>Beason said the commission will help to identify the needs of the
community and advise on how to provide positive outcomes for the
immigrant and refugee population. The commission will also play an
advisory role in enacting and implementing the language access policy
legislation.</p>
<p>Tacoma’s population encompasses 31 percent minority, so a commission
like this makes sense. Approximately 13 percent of the city’s population
is foreign born, Beason said.</p>
<p>“This can range from Africa, East Asia, Eastern Europe, Pacific
Islands, and South America,” Beason said. “We are seeking members from
these communities to represent the various struggles. The top languages
spoken in Tacoma are Spanish, Khmer, Korean, Vietnamese and Russian. In
an effort to be more inclusive we are currently translating our
(committees, boards, and commissions) application into these languages.”</p>
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<br clear="all"><br>-- <br><div class="gmail_signature" data-smartmail="gmail_signature">=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+<br><br> Harold F. Schiffman<br><br>Professor Emeritus of <br> Dravidian Linguistics and Culture <br>Dept. of South Asia Studies <br>University of Pennsylvania<br>Philadelphia, PA 19104-6305<br><br>Phone: (215) 898-7475<br>Fax: (215) 573-2138 <br><br>Email: <a href="mailto:haroldfs@gmail.com" target="_blank">haroldfs@gmail.com</a><br><a href="http://ccat.sas.upenn.edu/~haroldfs/" target="_blank">http://ccat.sas.upenn.edu/~haroldfs/</a> <br><br>-------------------------------------------------</div>
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