Annual immigration summit
GRIP is a coalition of attorneys, clergy, community leaders, charitable organizations, and concerned citizens working to raise awareness about immigration issues in Berks County through education, communication, and advocacy. Our primary focus is to educate the community on the issues facing local youth and their families as they seek to continue their education, research possible paths to citizenship and safely become productive, contributing members of the community.
GRIP’s Annual Immigration Summit is an opportunity to learn more about the issues facing many families in our local community. This year’s program will include:
- Panel discussions on - Immigration Legislation; Healthcare Challenges; Workforce Development
- Special screening & talk back - Ms. Michelle Angela Ortiz will present her new documentary developed through interviews with families detained at the Berks Family Residential Center!
- Discussion Groups focused around:
-
- Workforce Development – untapped resources; changing demographics; fair labor laws
- Healthcare Challenges – what care is available; where are the gaps; public charge concerns
- Waking Dreams – video resource and tools for classroom or discussion groups
Special screening & talk back
The conference will present a special screening of a short documentary from the "Familias Separadas" project created by the artist Michelle Angela Ortiz. The short documentary is a work in progress that highlights the stories of families that were detained at the Berks family prison in Pennsylvania and the public artworks that were recently installed in Harrisburg. The screening will be followed by a talkback by the artist and representatives from the Shut Down Berks Coalition.
Want to Donate to the scholarship fund?
This past summer, we awarded $30,000 to 21 undocumented students! Their pursuit to an education would not have been possible without contributions from concerned citizens like you. Any amount donated will make the difference in a student's life. Please go to our GRIP Scholarship Fund tab for more information on how to donate.
DACA is under attack
President Trump has announced to end DACA! There is light at the end of the tunnel, the DREAM Act 2017 is being pushed, but we need your help! Call, visit, Tweet, Facebook, protest your representatives to support the DREAM Act 2017! Need help getting the words out? Try this. Don't know who your preventative is? Check this out! Stand up, fight back.
This is one of the main reason we, as an organization, started the Scholarship Fund (more info below). We wanted to help our local undocumented students to continue their education. This year, thanks to your generous support, 23 undocumented students received a total of $30,550 in scholarship money. Some of these students go to college part time, work third shift, some work 2 jobs, while juggling family responsibilities, to be able to pay for the difference in tuition, books, and other fees. This oftentimes makes them take double as long to accomplish an associate or bachelor's degree. We need your voice, call your representatives and tell them to support the HIGHER EDUCATION TUITION FAIRNESS ACT.
DREAMer Scholarship Fund
The GRIP DREAMer Scholarship is for students whose immigration status (or lack thereof) does not let them get student loans or grants. By donating, you will be helping a student like the De Factos reach their dream of higher education. Any little bit counts. Make your tax-deductible donation to:
Berks County Community Foundation,
237 Court Street
Reading, PA 19601
Att: GRIP DREAMer Scholarship
or donate online by clicking here! Thank you!
Learn About Us
We are a community organization that educates the public on immigration reform. We hold information sessions with the latest information to inform those who are directly affected and those who want to know more about it.
We are made up of community members, such as church leaders, immigration attorneys, high school and post-secondary school faculty, immigration leaders, and concerned citizens.
We make a difference, one person and student at a time.
#ShutDownBerks
Let's #SHUTDOWNBERKS Detention Center! We need this place closed down and the families with their families!...
Posted by Greater Reading Immigration Project - GRIP on Monday, 22 February 2016