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Sept. 24 - Sept. 30, 2021
‘THE PEOPLE’S HOUSE’
Borough president announces new partnerships, services available at Immigrant Welcome Center
BY KAYLA WONG
Queens Borough President
Donovan Richards announced
Monday, Sept. 13,
that the Immigrant Welcome
Center in Queens Borough
Hall will partner with Community
Mediation Services
and CUNY Citizenship Now!
to provide weekly, in-person
services for the more than 1
million immigrants who call
the borough their home.
The announcement comes
four months after the soft
launch of the first-of-its-kind
center at Queens Borough Hall,
a service hub providing comprehensive,
multilingual immigration
related resources such as
legal assistance and referrals
to community-based organizations
and city services.
Queens got its nickname
as the “World’s Borough” for a
reason, as more than one-third
of New York City’s 3 million immigrants
reside in the borough.
Nearly 50 percent of the Queens’
2.4 million residents were born
abroad.
“More than 1 million immigrants
from all corners of the
globe call Queens home, and it
is vitally important that all our
neighbors regardless of place of
origin know that Queens Borough
Hall — The People’s House
— is ready and able to address
their needs, whatever they may
be,” Richards said.
Richards said they’re excited
to partner with CUNY Citizenship
Now! and Community Mediation
Services in order to expand
the resources available at
the Immigrant Welcome Center.
Since its inception, the Immigrant
Welcome Center has
directly interfaced with nearly
100 constituents, the majority
of whom sought legal assistance
and were referred to CUNY Citizenship
Now! for free legal consultations.
CUNY Citizenship Now! Director
Allan Wernick said they
are proud to begin in-person
immigration law services at
Courtesy of Queens Borough President’s Offi ce
Queens Borough Hall, beginning
Sept. 14.
“COVID-19 will not stop
us from providing free, highquality
legal assistance to immigrants
seeking a path to U.S.
citizenship,” Wernick said.
Members of Richards’ staff
who oversee the Immigrant
Welcome Center also continue
to meet directly with community
based organizations and
attend community events to
interact with residents in need
of services right in their own
neighborhoods.
“Community Mediation Services
is excited to partner with
Borough President Richards
in assisting our fellow community
members one excluded
worker at a time,” Community
Mediation Services CEO John
Harrison said. “We encourage
anyone whose income has been
impacted by the pandemic to
reach out to the CMS office for
direct assistance.”
The Immigrant Welcome
Center has several upcoming
events.Every Thursday, from 10
a.m. to 5 p.m., they will host a bilingual
Community Mediation
Services staff member, whose
role within the center is to assist
immigrant New Yorkers in
applying for the New York State
Excluded Workers Fund — a
one-time payment program for
immigrant residents who lost
income during the COVID-19
pandemic but were ineligible for
various federal unemployment
and pandemic relief benefits.
Every Tuesday, from 9 a.m.
to 5 p.m. beginning on Sept. 14,
they will host an immigration
lawyer from CUNY Citizenship
Now! — the largest university
legal assistance program in the
nation — offering Queens immigrants
free legal consultations
and application assistance.
Open on weekdays from 9
a.m. to 5 p.m., the Immigrant
Welcome Center can be contacted
via phone at 718-286-0644
and via email at welcome@
queensbp.org. In-person visits
are by appointment only. The
Community Mediation Services
or CUNY Citizenship Now! representatives
can be reached via
phone by contacting the Immigrant
Welcome Center.
Community Mediation Services
can also be reached at 718-
523-6868 or EWF@mediatenyc.
org.
Additional information
about Borough President Richards’
Immigrant Welcome Center
can be found at queensbp.
org/immigrantwelcomecenter,
the Center’s dedicated webpage,
complete with a community calendar
and links to a wide array
of resources.
Vol. 87 No. 39 32 total pages
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