The Role of Local Government in Multicultural Policy – An International Perspective FATIMA SHAMA Friday, September 12, 2014

STRATEGIES FOR CREATING IMMIGRANT-FRIENDLY CITIES & COMMUNITIES AGENDA: SELF-ASSESSMENT ROLE OF LOCAL GOVERNMENTS STRATEGIES & SOLUTIONS QUESTIONS INTRODUCTION| 3

IMMIGRANT-FRIENDLINESS: MEASURING WELCOMING, DIVERSITY & INCLUSION

SELF-ASSESSMENT: MEASURING WELCOMING, DIVERSITY AND INCLUSION OBJECTIVES: Self-assessment on measurements of welcoming, diversity, inclusion and integration on a scale from 1 to 5, with 5 being closest to ideal This exercise will help identify strengths, weaknesses and challenges in approach to welcoming and serving diverse communities MEASUREMENTS: DIVERSITY ACCESS TO PUBLIC BENEFITS & SERVICES EMPLOYMENT AND INCOME CIVIC ENGAGEMENT PUBLIC SAFETY EDUCATIONAL ATTAINMENT WARMTH OF WELCOME ASSESSMENT | 5

ROLE OF LOCAL GOVERNMENTS

DEMOGRAPHIC SHIFTS BACKGROUND| 14

DEMOGRAPHIC SHIFTS TOP COUNTRIES OF ORIGIN NEW YORK CITY 1970 & 2010 BACKGROUND| 16

NYC MAYOR’S OFFICE OF IMMIGRANT AFFAIRS MISSION STATEMENT: Building on its Charter mandate, the Mayor’s Office of Immigrant Affairs promotes the well-being of immigrant communities by recommending policies and programs that facilitate the successful integration of immigrant New Yorkers into the civic, economic and cultural life of the City. INTRODUCTION | 2

STRATEGIES & SOLUTIONS CITIZENSHIP | 2

CREATING A MUNICIPAL AGENDA COMPONENTS: ENSURE AND ENHANCE ACCESS: Promote use of city services and access to information and resources for immigrants PROVIDE TECH. ASSISTANCE: Serve as a key resource to other agencies and offices regarding immigrants Confidentiality Serving Vulnerable Youth (ACS) Language Access Universal Pre-K (DOE) BUILD PARTNERSHIPS: Liaise with and promote collaboration between city agencies and offices and immigrant communities CELEBRATE CONTRIBUTIONS: Coordinate programs celebrating immigrant contributions and supporting immigrant heritage Listening Tour Immigrant Heritage Week Civic Engagement StoryCorps AGENDA| 21

LANGUAGE ACCESS OBJECTIVES: Build a more customer service-oriented approach to the delivery of government services Promote meaningful access to services for limited English proficient residents through effective communication that includes multilingual signage, interpretation services, translation of essential documents, plain language principles, and multilingual outreach campaigns Increase government efficiency through standardizing language access across agencies Further the public safety, health, economic prosperity, and general welfare of all City residents by increasing their access to City programs and services LANGUAGE ACCESS| 23

CITIZENSHIP OBJECTIVES: Help greater numbers of immigrant parents apply to become U.S. citizens Increase visibility and accessibility of affordable, high-quality immigration legal assistance Connect immigrants with neighborhood-based financial institutions to help them establish credit, open bank accounts and learn about other mainstream financial services that are available Increase immigrant parent involvement in education by providing immigration-related services for parents in schools CITIZENSHIP | 28

CIVIC ENGAGEMENT OBJECTIVES: Connect immigrant communities to information and resources about City services and additional resources for community development Identify and cultivate immigrant leaders who will act as ambassadors and liaisons between municipal government and immigrant communities Forge meaningful and trusting partnerships between immigrant leaders and government representatives Build bridges of communication, understanding, and respect among diverse communities and all city residents CIVIC ENGAGEMENT| 32

ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT OBJECTIVES: Make it easier for immigrant owned small businesses to start and grow by connecting them with business courses courses and other resources Increase the earnings potential of unemployed or underemployed immigrants with advanced degrees and in-demand skills Leverage human capital assets to meet the growing demand for skilled labor in the STEM, finance and healthcare sectors ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT| 40

POLICE & COMMUNITY RELATIONS OBJECTIVES: Promote public safety by building and strengthening relationships with community leaders and organizations in immigrant communities Coordinate with other bureaus, City agencies, organizations and various departmental units to address specific community concerns Provide linguistically and culturally competent information on police department services and programs POLICE & COMMUNITY| 44

EDUCATION OBJECTIVES: Ensure that immigrant parents have meaningful access to their child’s school Provide opportunities for immigrant parents to access and influence decision- making structures in the school system Create material resources for schools to use with English Language Learner (ELL) students Use data to target solutions toward high academic achievement for all ELLs EDUCATION | 49

FINANCIAL EMPOWERMENT OBJECTIVES: Promote financial empowerment and inclusion for immigrant households Increase immigrants’ access to high-quality, low-cost financial education and counseling Promote tax preparation and improve access to income-boosting tax credits Connect low-income immigrant households to safe and affordable banking and asset-building products and services FINANCIAL EMPOWERMENT | 54

PUBLIC LIBRARIES OBJECTIVES: Curate collections of books and other materials and provide cultural programming to reflect the ethnic diversity of the local population Provide relevant educational and skill-building workshops, programs and other services that make it easier for immigrants to survive and thrive Develop partnerships with public, private and non-profit institutions around shared objectives such as English language instruction, public safety, citizenship and other topics LIBRARIES | 58

CONCLUSION & QUESTIONS CITIZENSHIP | 2

THANK YOU! CONTACTS: Fatima Shama fatima@fatimashama.com nyc.gov/integration CONCLUSION | 63