Western Center On Law & Poverty

On October 23rd, Western Center has the distinct honor of presenting the Derrick Bell Award to Author Isabel Wilkerson at Garden Party 2024.⁠ ⁠ Isabel Wilkerson is a nationally acclaimed, Pulitzer Prize-winning writer and highly sought-after speaker, whose brave and insightful work has changed how an entire country understands its history. In her groundbreaking New York Times bestsellers: The Warmth of Other Suns and Caste, Wilkerson explores the Great Migration and the hidden hierarchy in America, uncovering “the missing puzzle piece of our country’s history” (The American Prospect). ⁠ ⁠ Derrick Bell was a distinguished legal scholar, prolific writer, and tireless champion for equality. His work laid the foundation for critical race theory, a body of legal scholarship that explores how racism is embedded in laws and legal institutions. Over the course of his five-decade career, he worked to expose the persistence of racism. He served as the Executive Director of Western Center in 1967-68, as faculty of the University of Southern California’s School of Law.⁠ ⁠ Tickets are available at bit.ly/WCLPGP24. We offer discounted tickets to our nonprofit partners and students. Please email [email protected] to request a discount code.

CONOZCA A LOS DEFENSORES - Justicia para el Proceso de Parto: Ampliando el Acceso y Eliminando los Prejuicios Únase al Western Center on Law and Poverty, Black Women for Wellness y California Black Women's Health Project para una conversación interactiva sobre cómo ampliar el acceso a los centros de maternidad y eliminar los prejuicios en la atención del proceso de parto y durante el parto. Según un informe de March of Dimes, desde el 2012, por lo menos 46 hospitales de California han cerrado o suspendido las operaciones de sus salas de maternidad, incluyendo los servicios del proceso de parto y durante el parto, y 10 cerraron solo el año pasado. Únase a nosotros mientras discutimos los esfuerzos de promoción para ampliar los centros de maternidad, abordar el racismo y los prejuicios y mejorar la experiencia de atención médica para las personas morenas que dan a luz y sus hijos. Registrarse en bit.ly/MTA82024

Join Western Center on Law and Poverty, Black Women for Wellness Action Project, and the California Black Women's Health Project for a special Meet the Advocates on expanding access to birth centers and eliminating racial bias in birthing care and delivery. According to a report by the March of Dimes, since 2012, at least 46 California hospitals have either closed or suspended operations of their maternity wards, labor and delivery services included – with 10 closing in the last year alone. Join us as we discuss the advocacy efforts to expand birthing centers, address racism and bias, and improve the health care experience for Black and brown birthing people and their children. This event will be held simultaneously in English and Spanish. RSVP at: bit.ly/MTA82024

Western Center's Annual Fundraiser: Garden Party returns to the Ebell of Los Angeles on October 23rd! We are delighted to announce this year's honorees:⁠ ⁠ Isabel Wilkerson, Journalist and Author⁠ Derrick Bell Award⁠ ⁠ HBO Max's docuseries JUSTICE, USA and Executive Producers: Marshall Goldberg, Michael Tollin, Randy Ferrell, Common, and Tamara Brown ⁠ Media Advocacy Award⁠ ⁠ Mona Tawatao, Legal Director at Equal Justice Society⁠ Mary Burdick Advocates Award⁠ ⁠ 6PM Garden Party⁠ 7PM Program & Awards⁠ 8:15-9PM Book Signing with Isabel Wilkerson⁠ ⁠ All attendees will receive a signed copy of Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents.⁠ ⁠ TICKET SALES ARE NOW OPEN at bit.ly/WCLPGP24 ⁠ We offer a limited number of discounted tickets for nonprofit partners. Please reach out to Nora Olagbaju at [email protected] to request a discount code.  ⁠

Register now! OneJustice is hosting a training with the Western Center On Law & Poverty on Medical Debt Collection Defense with a focus on charity care. Open to all, this training module includes 1.0 hour of MCLE credit! This virtual event will be held on August 27th from 12:00 PM to 1:00 PM PST. Learn about key aspects of debt collection defense when your client is being sued for medical debt, including specialty defenses, such as how to effectively advocate for charity care. While many of the "standard" defenses for debt collection apply, there are specialty defenses, including how to effectively advocate for charity care. Join us and tap into the expertise of our speakers, Danny Sternberg, Staff Attorney at the Western Center on Law and Poverty and Joy Dockter, Senior Staff Attorney at the Western Center on Law and Poverty. Register for this training here: https://lnkd.in/euagaqxt. #ProBono #Training #ConsumerDebtDefense #MedicalDebtCollectionDefense

Today's victory for street vendors and community organizers ends the City’s remaining unlawful vending bans, including excessive distancing requirements from swap meets, farmers’ markets, and schools, and compensates vendors who received costly and unjustified citations. ⁠ ⁠ The plaintiffs are represented by Public Counsel, Western Center on Law & Poverty, and the law firm of Arnold & Porter. Many thanks to community organizers and mobilizers who drove this victory Community Power Collective, East LA Community Corporation, and Inclusive Action for the City. Read more at https://lnkd.in/gAfSyDfk

Yesterday, LA Forward Institute and community members, represented by Western Center, Public Counsel,and Strumwasser & Woocher filed a lawsuit against the City of Los Angeles for obstructing the 140-unit Venice Dell Community affordable and permanent supportive housing project in Venice. As legal counsel, our work to support the construction of affordable housing projects like VENICE DELL are vital to protect the rights of all people to have safe and affordable housing. This project has been approved by both the Coastal Commission and the LA City Council. But delay tactics illustrate the pattern of discrimination that hinder many projects like this. As stated in the suit, select City staff "seek to defeat the Project not by democratic means in the City Council... but to use their offices to tie the Project up in red tape outside of public view."

BREAKING: In a profoundly disappointing ruling, the U.S. Supreme Court today decided that the US Constitution does not protect homeless people against cruel and unusual punishment, even when they have no choice to sleep in public using things like blankets or pillows. Arresting or fining people for trying to survive is expensive, counterproductive, and cruel. This inhumane ruling, which goes against the values of nearly three-quarters of Americans, will make homelessness worse in Grants Pass and nationwide. Cities are now even more empowered to neglect proven housing-based solutions and to arrest or fine those with no choice but to sleep outdoors. While we are disappointed, we are not surprised that this Supreme Court ruled against the interests of our poorest neighbors. This ruling will also adversely impact BIPOC communities and individuals, who are disproportionately unhoused and often targeted merely for being present in public spaces. The Court's ruling does not change Western Center's work. We remain steadfastly committed to evidence-based solutions to homelessness. We remain committed to holding public officials accountable in addressing the needs of people living on our streets. And we remain fiercely committed to housing, not handcuffs, for our unhoused neighbors. _______________________________________ Read our Official Statement here: https://lnkd.in/gCxpUdGW

BREAKING: In a historically shameful decision, the Supreme Court has ruled in #JohnsonVGrantsPass that homeless people are not included in the Constitution’s protections against cruel and unusual punishment. This ruling will make homelessness drastically worse and impact the 250,000+ people who sleep outside each night, as well as millions of Americans who are just one missed paycheck away from homelessness. Arresting or fining people for trying to survive is expensive, counterproductive, cruel, and simply does not work. We are enraged but unsurprised that the Supreme Court sided with out-of-touch billionaires and against the poorest among us. #HousingNotHandcuffs To truly solve homelessness, we demand the Biden administration and Congress invest at least $356 billion in transforming approaches to homelessness away from criminalization and towards proven housing-based solutions. Read our full statement: https://lnkd.in/eFy7GFuu

AB 846 (Bonta), our cosponsored bill, is out of Senate Housing! This is such a huge milestone to protecting the most vulnerable tenants. The LIHTC program is a critical source of affordable housing funding for low-income, elderly, and tenants with disabilities. The program provides deed-restricted units for tenants at 80% AMI and below. However, there are no assurances that a tenant's rent will remain affordable over time. In fact, since LIHTC rents are tied to AMI and not to the tenant's actual income, every time AMI rises, so does the rent. We have seen rent increases of up to 50% for elderly tenants. This rent gouging needs to stop. AB 846 will require the California Tax Credit Allocation Committee, which oversees LIHTC, to prevent price gouging by establishing a limit on rent increase in existing LIHTC properties. Thank you Assemblywoman Bonta for advocating for some of the most vulnerable tenants. We look forward to continuing the fight in Senate Judiciary and beyond.