Media Contact:
Christine Dunn, Seven Letter
christine@sevenletter.com
617.646.1044

Boston (April 26,2023) – Members of the media and public are invited to attend a legislative briefing event on Tuesday, May 2, 2023 to raise awareness to the plight of the immigrant community who lack access to basic food assistance and other key benefits. This event will highlight the need for both legislation and funding to restore basic food and cash assistance benefits for legally present immigrants, and will include presentations from medical professionals and organizations working with immigrant families. It will also include resources for constituent services staff working with immigrant families.

Since 1996, many immigrants who often are working low-wage jobs have been denied both federal food assistance (SNAP) and cash assistance for families based on their status – including victims of violence, “Dreamers,” immigrants with pending asylum and others residing in Massachusetts. Senator Sal DiDomenico and Reps Antonio Cabral and Judith Gracia have filed legislation, Senate 76 and House 135, that seeks to restore state-funded nutrition benefits to legally present immigrants, and cash assistance to immigrant families with children.

When: Tuesday May 2, 2023 at 12-1 PM

Where: Massachusetts State House,
Room 222 (2nd floor)
24 Beacon Street
Boston, MA, 02133

Speakers include:
Sen. Sal DiDomenico (D-Everett)
Rep. Antonio Cabral (D-New Bedford)
Rep. Judith Garcia (D-Chelsea)
Gladys Vega, Executive Director, La Colaborativa
A Chelsea immigrant family
Anissa Dickerson, Director of the Refugee Women’s Health Clinic at Boston Medical Center, Assistant Professor BU School of Medicine and Certified Nurse Midwife
Dr. Fiona Danaher, Mass General for Children, Mass General Brigham. Director of the MGH Center for Immigrant Health

Introductions by: Norieliz De Jesus, Policy and Organizing Director, La Colaborativa; and Patricia Baker, Senior Policy Advocate, Mass Law Reform Institute.

About the campaign and bills:
The Feeding Our Neighbors campaign, FeedingOurNeighborsMA.org, formed in December of 2022, comes at a critical time. During the summer of 2022, more than 2,000 individuals arrived in Massachusetts, double the number who arrived a year earlier. Each month, more immigrants with legal status arrive in Massachusetts but struggle to feed their families as they work to get on their feet. That trend is expected to continue as numerous global economic challenges and political conflicts force more people to flee their home countries.

House 135 and Senate 76 would provide a framework for critical basic benefits to help these individuals acclimate to their new surroundings by providing state-funded nutrition benefits to supplement their low-wage earnings and help immigrant families who are continuing to struggle due to the ongoing economic impact of the pandemic.

Over 25 years ago, the 1996 Welfare Reform Law eliminated core food and cash assistance benefits to thousands of legally present immigrants across the nation — including victims of violence, “Dreamers,” immigrants with pending asylum, and immigrants with Temporary Protected Status. The bulk of immigrants impacted are working intermittent or low-wage jobs, but are unable to meet their basic food needs for their families. In 1997, the Massachusetts Legislature authorized basic cash and food assistance for needy immigrants, but the benefits ended in 2002. Six states in the nation currently provide state-funded benefits to eligible immigrants, including California, Connecticut, Maine, Minnesota and Washington State.

About Massachusetts Law Reform Institute (MLRI)
Founded in 1968, Massachusetts Law Reform Institute (MLRI) is a nonprofit poverty law and policy program that provides statewide advocacy and leadership in advancing laws, policies, and practices that secure economic, racial, and social justice for low-income people and communities.

About La Colaborativa
Founded in 1988, La Colaborativa is a steady, trusted, and fearless partner to Latinx immigrants in Greater Boston, with a focus on gateway cities and towns such as Chelsea, East Boston, Everett, Lynn, Revere, and Malden. La Colaborativa’s food pantry distributes emergency food to roughly 5,000 families each week from Chelsea and surrounding communities.

La Colaborativa is a trusted resource for Massachusetts’ immigrant community, disseminating linguistically- and culturally appropriate information and resources to some of the most vulnerable community members in the state, including newly arrived immigrants, undocumented families, non-English speakers, and low-income tenants and workers. For more information about their work, please visit la-colaborativa.org.