IFJ 2021 blogs

My name is Meghan Ho, a rising Junior majoring in biology and sociology, and minoring in social justice at the University of Portland. This summer, I’ve secured a virtual internship position at the Center for Migration, Gender, and Justice (CMGJ). 

The CMGJ is a non-profit, non-governmental organization that is youth-led, women*-led, and migrant-led. The CMGJ is premised on the belief that gender justice beyond borders necessitates agency, representation, and accountability in protecting human rights for all. Their work focuses on research, advocacy, and education, and addresses the needs and challenges of women*, LGBTQIA+, and gender diverse migrants. They have made it their mission to shrink spaces between migrant communities and governing bodies. 

My role with the CMGJ is Program Youth Coordinator for their new “Gender Justice Beyond Borders Leadership Program.”  This program is an initiative by WoW e.V. and the CMGJ that seeks to equip youth advocates with the skills and knowledge to advocate for migrant rights and gender justice in Europe. The program trains ten migrant youth / youth with a migration background (18-25 years) for collective action at the intersection of migration and gender. The program’s focal advocacy areas are gender-based violence experienced by women*, girls, LGBTQIA+, and gender diverse migrants and the 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence (November / December 2021). The program will result in a campaign for this year’s 16 Days of Activism that centers on the lived experiences of migrants, and that calls for the prevention, mitigation, and response of gender-based violence in the context of migration across Europe. The six-month program consists of three components: education, research, and advocacy. The education component is an online course on “Gender and Migration,” taught by Dr. Lara-Zuzan Golesorkhi. 

This summer, I have been assisting in all activities relating to the education section, such as: engaging with participants’ assignment submissions, reviewing Case Studies, and facilitating bi-weekly discussions on the material. It has been a pleasure closely working with the participants, as they all contribute insightful, thought-provoking ideas. Some of the participants also have lived experiences they are brave enough to share. 

I am extremely grateful to the Interns for Justice (IFJ) Program. Prior to this internship, I had very little learning experience in the issues we’ve analyzed through the “Gender Justice Beyond Borders Leadership Program.” I’m very happy with my placement at the CMGJ, and have learned a great deal about intersectional identities, how migration policies are often strongly gendered, and (the lack of) migrant rights.

This program has inspired me to continue my involvement with the CMGJ beyond the framework of the IFJ Program. I will continue my role as Program Youth Coordinator in its entirety (6 months), meaning I will be able to assist and participate in the research and advocacy sections of the program. I am so excited to have found an internship that challenges me, and encourages me to maximize my involvement. I can’t wait to gain more advocacy experience later this year as part of the “Gender Justice Beyond Borders Leadership Program!”

My name is Angela Gonzalez, and I am a rising junior majoring in Biology and Spanish, with a minor in Gender and Women’s Studies at the University of Portland. My internship placement this summer is with the Multnomah County Health Department at their HIV Health Services Center in Portland, Oregon. 

The HIV Health Services Center serves people living with HIV by providing comprehensive care including primary health care, and social and mental health services. There are medical teams of a provider, nurse, medical assistant and medical case manager. 

I am the temporary Rapid Start Navigator working with clients who have recently been diagnosed with HIV, been out of care for at least a year, or been previously diagnosed but never had care. I work with clients for 6-8 weeks and help them connect with internal services at the clinic. Following their intake, I reach out to the client and check in about barriers they may be facing that could prevent them from coming to the clinic for their initial provider visit. Depending on the client’s needs, I am able to offer resources such as cab rides and bus tickets, medical motels, and more. Once the client arrives at the clinic, I meet them at the downstairs lobby and accompany them up to the clinic and explain my role and how I’ll be working with them and connecting them to resources. This position requires collaboration, communication, and outreach. I do reminder calls, outreach emails and lots of charting so everyone working with the client can be on the same page. 

Ultimately, I am trying to help connect them to internal services at the clinic, and meet milestones of having them attend at least two provider visits, have two lab visits, start their medication and go through a refill, and do a warm handoff with their medical case manager. I try to meet clients where they’re at, in terms of how much capacity they have to engage in medical care at the clinic, and perhaps physically if getting to the clinic is a barrier. I use my county phone to text and call clients, where I am available, can respond quickly to their needs, and communicate their needs with their medical team faster. 

I’ve been learning so much about all the components of comprehensive medical care and other community organizations that we help clients connect with. All of my colleagues have valuable knowledge and experiences, and share the passion of trying to advocate for the clients we serve. It’s been great working alongside them, and getting to work with clients. In the future, I know I’d like to continue pursuing this line of work, where I can contribute to a comprehensive care model to advocate for clients facing barriers to accessing medical care and community resources. 

Hello! My name is Vy-An (pronounced vee-on), and I am a rising junior. I am studying sociology with a concentration in criminology and minoring in social justice and constitutional studies. Phew! I know that is long.

It was a challenge seeking a host site, but I landed an internship with IRCO Immigration Legal Services (ILS). I recently started this internship, and I have been working remotely. Despite the late start, I got exposed to a lot of information that I am still processing. So far, I have learned about immigration laws and their challenges, experience life as an immigrant lawyer, and communicating with non-English speaking clients.

IRCO Immigration Legal Services (ILS) has been doing legal work over the past 13 plus years. The first Refugee Adjustment Day at IRCO began in 2007. This program started with Board of Immigration Appeals accredited reps- non-attorneys who have enough education and experience in immigration law to provide immigration legal services. The ILS program was official when they had their first attorney in Fall 2017. And in Spring 2019, they brought in a second attorney.

IRCO’s ILS program has three areas of focus: know your rights (outreach, education, and information hub), navigations (connecting community members to legal services), and direct services (affirmative applications to USCIS and removal defense). The ILS program works alongside and supports other IRCO’s internal programs- senior refugee services, domestic violence, and anti-trafficking.

During my time here, I have been alternating between the affirmative and removal defense side of work. I am currently working alongside the removal defense attorney and have been doing background researching for a case. The removal defense side of work focuses on deportation defense at Portland Immigration Court. I enjoy this side of work since I get a better understanding of what asylum seekers go through. Also, I get to do legal research and (possibly) go to court to see my supervisor in action. But overall, before starting this internship, I did not realize how difficult it was for immigrants to become US citizens. The process is complex.

I am content and grateful to work with the IRCO Immigration Legal Services team and I look forward to continuing interning with them for the rest of the summer, learning more about life as a lawyer, and more about immigration law!

My name is Grace Adam, I am an incoming senior Economics major and Social Justice minor here at University of Portland. This summer I have been remotely interning at the Coalition of Communities of Color (CCC) in Portland, OR.

The CCC is a coalition of culturally specific non-profits around Oregon, and they help support and work with their members to combat racial and socioeconomic disparities through advocacy and research. The CCC is active in supporting and advocating for specific legislative bills each session to provide more supportive and meaningful policies for marginalized communities. They also aim to provide community-based research to battle racism in data collection and research publications.

My project this summer is to create a resource for the CCC and their members to use when conducting formal research, it is called the Research Justice Roots Project. This resource is essentially a big spreadsheet that has seven policy framework areas; this includes Environmental Justice, Infrastructure Development, Wellness, Education, Economic Prosperity, Strengthening Democracy, and Public & Community Safety. Within each framework I am researching sub-policy areas to find existing publications, reports, datasets, and legislation.

With the support of one of CCC’s Senior Researchers, Dr. Mira Mohsini, and CCC’s Director of Research, Dr. Andres Lopez, I have learned how to identify racist data and information. They have provided me with webinars and presentations to learn about racism within data collection and how to address it. I am learning a lot about programs and legislation in Oregon that are supposed to help marginalized communities by creating this spreadsheet. This resource will be used when CCC and their members want to conduct formal research, they can utilize this spreadsheet and find background information and research that exists in particular policy areas.

Later in the summer I will be presenting my work to the other researchers and the Advocacy Director. I have greatly enjoyed my time with the CCC and look forward to the rest of the summer working with them!

Currently, I am working with a team of two other UP students as well as Dr. Lara-Zuzan Golesorkhi, the founder and executive director of CMGJ, to create a policy scorecard. A scorecard is an evaluation and monitoring tool that streamlines policy analysis and helps create accountability for policymakers. Our scorecard will analyze the level of gender-responsiveness in various policies, particularly those around migration. Ultimately, we want this scorecard to be accessible, and by extension to make policy accessible.

As a political science student and researcher, I am all too familiar with the complex policy language common from the international to local levels. This complexity often makes it feel like policy is something distant or lofty, something that might not be particularly applicable to me personally. But it is. Policies affect our lives intimately from regulating our access to healthcare to our ability to be employed. These policy impacts can be positive or negative. Because women and nonbinary folx on the move are among the most marginalized communities, policy must take into account the unique experiences, challenges, and needs they have in order to have the greatest positive impact.

We hope this scorecard can be a means to closing the gap between migrant women and policymakers to achieving this goal.

Feel free to look more into CMGJ’s work at The Center for Migration, Gender, and Justice (migrationgenderjustice.com).

My name is Liam McDonough, and this summer I am serving as a Prep Cook in the kitchen at Village Market here in Portland. The market is a program of Village Gardens, a healthy food access organization founded in North Portland, and now completely based in empowering New Columbia, the largest public housing development in Oregon, and a quick 5 minute drive from the million dollar houses that line Willamette Boulevard.

A picturesque, vibrant, and diverse community, many in New Columbia struggle with generational poverty and continued oppression. That said, New Columbia doesn’t feel defeated. I often feel like there is hope in the air, and a shared sense of budding opportunity. Above all, it is the only place I’ve been in Portland in which I feel an inherent, strong sense of comradery and connection. 

“NOTHING bottom of the bag… We want our people to taste the best.” 

This phrase was uttered by my boss, Charles, founder of the market, early on in my time there when he saw me putting broken chips in a packaged chili/chips combo. This statement perfectly encapsulates the mission I am aiding this summer. He repeats this message often in other words, but the theme remains constant: you are what you eat.

For far too long, poor people and People of Color have had their worth symbolically dictated to them through the often highly processed, low nutrient foods they have access to. When Charles and others began building the market, their goal was to disrupt this paradigm and put affordable, healthy, and fresh foods within walking distance of the community. With their discounts and ready supply of fresh produce, the market has done just that. Charles’ job is to take it a step further and make affordable grab & go items such as breakfast burritos, teriyaki bowls, curries, ribs, and more. However, he is a one-person operation in the kitchen, and without extra help, there is only so much he can do. One area where he seeks improvement is in sandwiches, a popular staple throughout the years at the market that he has not had the labor to make happen.  

That’s where I come in. With kids out of school, it’s more important than ever to provide as much nutrition as possible for the market’s 400 daily customers, and sandwiches are an effective way to do that. While many days my work revolves around sandwiches, its also been great working on other recipes with Charles, learning from my co-workers, and engaging with members of this community tucked just around the corner from my school.  

As of July 1^st, Village Gardens is no longer connected to Janus Youth Programs, and will be their own community-based nonprofit seeking to better the lives of those who live in New Columbia. I highly suggest you check out their other programs I didn’t have time to mention, like the orchard and garden, and if you’re located in the area, please feel free to stop by Village Market and shop to support the organization and try out some of our specialties. 

This year, the Moreau Center for Service and Justice staff chose the theme Neighbor is a Verb, recognizing our desire to be actively and creatively engaged with our communities.   As we enter this second summer of the COVID-19 pandemic, we’re grateful to have eight intrepid Interns for Justice, who will be doing just that!   

Over the next 8-10 weeks, IFJs will serve with organizations working alongside and advocating with marginalized communities. Through these experiences, they will deepen their understanding of social justice issues and critically examine root causes. While building relationships with colleagues and the communities and individuals they serve, they’ll develop capacity as allies and neighbors in solidarity with others. 

This summer’s cohort of interns is engaging in a variety of internship placements. Because of the COVID-19 limitations, several internships have adapted to a virtual format, allowing IFJs to engage in their host organization’s work while working safely from home. Others are taking precautions while proceeding with doing work on the front lines, providing vital services to communities in need. 

Interns & Placements: 

Grace Adam- Coalition of Communities of Color (Portland, OR) 

Vy-an Nguyen-  IRCO Legal Services (Portland, OR)

Angela Gonzalez- Multnomah County Health Department (Portland, OR)

Grace Fortson- Center for Gender, Migration, and Justice (Portland, OR) 

Meghan Ho- Center for Gender, Migration, and Justice (Portland, OR) 

Kiley Zarzoza- Maple Valley Food Bank (Maple Valley, WA) 

Liam McDonough- Village Market (Portland, OR) 

Meghan Potter – Rosewood Initiative (Portland, OR) 

Throughout the summer, each intern will share reflections about their internship experience. We encourage you to come back often and follow along!