Yakatumirwa Ndira 31, 2021
9: 14 pm
Yakanyorwa naGrant Segall muCleveland Jewish News pa1/31/2021
Pakutanga kwedenda, ave kuda kusvitsa makore makumi manomwe, Susan Steels akarasikirwa nebasa rake renguva refu semubiki. Zvichakadaro, bhizimisi romumwe wake rokuronga mabiko rakafamba nenzira yamapati mazhinji, uye akaita sitiroko. Mabhiri akatanga kuwanda. Mari dzemortgage dzainge dzisingabhadharwi.
Saka, mukadzi wekuSouth Euclid akabatana nechaunga chakazvimba achitsvaga muripo wekushaya basa.
“Ndakaedza kuiwana paIndaneti, uye ndakaedza kufona,” akadaro. "Ndanga ndiri parunhare, parunhare, parunhare."
Ipapo shamwari dzakamuudza kuti afonere Legal Aid Society yeCleveland. Pane munhu akasimudza ipapo achibva atora mashoko ake. Mumwe munhu akafona zvakare mukati memaawa makumi maviri nemana.
“Ndakashatirwa zvikuru uye ndichichema,” Steels anoyeuka kudaro. “Vakandifambisa napo. Vakazvigadzirisa. Vakanaka kwazvo. Vanonzwisisa zvikuru.”
Mumwe mushandi weLegal Aid akaona kuti Steels, mubvakure achibva kuEngland, akanga atumira Ohio Jobs and Family Services kopi yedivi rake rimwe chete.
kwenguva yakareba green card. Saka, Masimbi akatumira rimwe divi. Ipapo rimwe gweta rakasvika kune yaizivikanwa zvikuru kunetsa-kusvika rikahwina mabhenefiti eSteels pasina kunzwa. Uye mumwe waaishanda naye akamuudza kuti aizokodzera zvitambi zvekudya.
Pakutanga, denda rakamanikidza Legal Aid kuvhara mahofisi ayo mana mumatunhu mashanu ainofukidza: Cuyahoga, Geauga, Lake, Lorain neAshtabula. Caseload yakanyura kubva pachiyero chayo chenguva dzose: zviuru zvisere kusvika zviuru gumi pagore, imwe neimwe yakabatsira vanhu vangangosvika vaviri.
Asi Legal Aid yakakurumidza kutenga michina nezvirongwa zvekubatsira vatengi online. Ikozvino nyaya dziri kuwedzera nezve kudzingwa, kurwara, kusabhadharwa rendi uye zvimwe zviratidzo zvedenda renyika, kunyanya kuvarombo. Kubva munaChikumi kusvika Gumiguru, nyaya dzebasa dzakakwira 26% kupfuura panguva imwecheteyo gore rapfuura, uye nyaya dzedzimba dzakakwira ne32%.
Case by case and en masse
Legal Aid inogadzirisa matambudziko nemutengi uye nehurongwa. Pazera remakore 115, sangano rinofungidzirwa kuti ndiro sangano rekare rechishanu uye Cuyahoga County ndiyo chete inopa kumiririra pachena kune vanhu vane mari shoma (kusvika 200% ye federal poverty line).
Gore rapfuura, Legal Aid yakadzivirira zvikamu makumi mapfumbamwe kubva muzana zvevatengi vachityisidzirwa kudzingwa uye 90% yekuvharirwa. Yakabvisa kutyisidzira kuchengetedzeka mu60% yenyaya dzakakodzera uye zvipingamupinyi padzidzo mune zvese. Vatengi vakawana mari inodarika madhora gumi nematatu emari, midziyo uye kuderedza chikwereti.
Sosaiti inopawo veruzhinji zvinhu uye maworkshops nezve kodzero dzemutemo, ichangobva kutarisa nezvematambudziko edenda.
"Ruzivo isimba," akadaro Melanie Shakarian, mutungamiriri weLegal Aid webudiriro nekufambiswa kwemashoko.
Zvakare, Legal Aid inotungamira kurwira shanduko dzakawanda. Zvakamutsa Cleveland Municipal Court, dare redzimhosva rekutanga renyika, Hough Area Development Corporation, uye chirongwa chegore rino chekodzero yekupa zano kuCleveland Housing Court, pakati pezvimwe zvitsva. Iye zvino Legal Aid iri kushanda nemamwe mapoka eOhio kurwisa kusarongeka kwemarudzi uye kusunungura Ohio Mabasa.
COVID-19 payakatanga kupararira, Legal Aid yakaitika yave kutokura. Sosaiti yave mumakore matatu emakore emushandirapamwe wekuunganidza mamiriyoni gumi nemashanu emadhora, kunyanya yemabasa.
Kubva 2018, bhajeti reLegal Aid rakwira kubva pamadhora 8.9 miriyoni kuenda pamadhora gumi nemaviri. Vatungamiri vakawedzera vashandi kubva ku12.2 kusvika ku80 uye vane tariro yekuwedzera gore rinouya. Vanovimbawo nevazvipiri vanosvika mazana masere pagore, kwete ese magweta.
“Tiri kukura kuti tisangane nezvinodiwa zvakawedzerwa,” akadaro Colleen Cotter, mukuru mukuru weLegal Aid kwemakore 15 apfuura. "Asi ichiri kuwedzera zviwanikwa zvedu."
Gore rakapera, Legal Aid yakadzinga vanhu vanopfuura hafu vachitsvaga rubatsiro rwayo. Inoisa pamberi nyaya dzinogona kubatsira vatengi zvakanyanya. Inoreva vamwe vanhu kumasangano anogona kubatsira nedzimwe nzira. Uye inodyidzana nemamwe mapoka akawanda.
Legal Aid inochengeta maawa ekushanda pamakambani makuru eMetroHealth, University Hospitals neSt. Vincent, ose ari muCleveland, kubatsira vatengi vezvipatara nezvemari uye nezvinetso zvekunze zvinokuvadza utano hwavo, kubva pakuchengetwa kwevana kusvika kudzimba dzine vanhu vakawanda. Inorwira kodzero dzedzidzo dzemhuri dzechikoro cheCleveland kuburikidza nechirongwa cheSay Yes to Education, icho chiri kupararira kuzvikoro zvese. Inoronga chirongwa cheKodzero yeKupanga mazano neUnited Way Services, iyo inobata zvese zvekusvika. Legal Aid ndiro zvakare sangano rinopihwa mari neUnited Way mumakore ayo zana nerimwe ekupa rubatsiro.
Varombo vanoda mutemo
Mutemo, semasangano mazhinji, wakarerekera kune vakapfuma. Vanohaya magweta epamusoro uye vanomiririra. Vanopa mishandirapamwe yevatongi uye nguva pfupi yadarika yemumiriri weDare Repamusorosoro reUS.
Asi Cotter akati varombo vanoda mutemo zvakanyanya, kunyanya panguva yedenda. Vanowanzova nehutano hwakanyanya uye hutano hwehutano. Ivo vanoshaya marudzi emabasa uye tekinoroji yekushanda kubva kumba. Uye vari kutogara kumucheto, vaine mashoma ekuchengetedza, hunyanzvi uye kubatanidza kuti vararame rimwezve dambudziko.
Cotter anoti tese taigona kushandisa magweta kakawanda kupfuura zvatingafunga.
“Zviri nyore kuziva, kana ndikapiwa masamanisi, kuti pamwe ndifonere gweta,” akadaro. “Zvakaoma kuziva kuti matambudziko akawanda emazuva ese anogona kugadziriswa negweta. Lawyering haisi nyaya chete. Ndezvekugadzirisa dambudziko. "
Semuyenzaniso, gweta reLegal Aid Jennifer Kinsley akakurudzira Medicaid kuti ivhare basa remwoyo neremazino kumutengi Aaliyah Najieb paSt. Vincent Charity Medical Center. Sezvinowanzoitika nevatengi venzanga, Kinsley akawana uye akazadzisa zvimwe zvaidiwa naNajieb: kusunga chisimbiso chake chemhosva, kuwana mabhenefiti ezvekushandisa, kugadzira hurongwa hwekubhadhara mabhenefiti ekuremara kweSocial Security, kumutsidzira chitupa chake chekuremara neRegional Transit Authority, uye zvimwe.
Najieb akati nezvaKinsley, “Uyu musikana wangu. Akandibatsira zvakanyanya. Ndakanga ndisingazivi kuti zvinhu zvemutemo. Ndaisaziva kuti ndine kodzero.”
Kana kutora Roy Miller. Pakutanga kwedenda, muridzi mutsva akadzinga Miller semaneja wepaki yepamusha. Legal Aid yakamukurudzira kuti abate hofisi yagavhuna, izvo zvakaita kuti anzwe kuOhio Jobs. Sangano iri rakaona kudzingwa kwake basa kwainge kusina kunaka ndokumupa muripo nekubhadhara.
Akadaro Miller, "Legal Aid yakandiitira nyore zvinhu."
Legal Aid yakaita kuti zvinhu zvive nyore kune vamwe vakawanda. Pakutanga kwedenda, zvakabatsira kunyudza account yemukadzi isinganzwisisike yeSocial Security account kuti arambe achigara mumba achisimudzira mararamire. Yakabatsira kururamisa mushumo wenhema wekare womumwe murume akanga achimunyima pokugara. Zvakanyengetedza muridzi wemba kuti aparadze tsikidzi dzakanga dzazadza bhegi remurwere wekenza.
Kuchinja kwakawanda
Pakatanga denda, Legal Aid yakaenda sezvinobvira. Yakatenga malaptop uye zvirongwa zvemasevhisi akareba, akadai sekunzwa uye notarizations. Yakabatsira vatengi kuwana hotspots kana kuvagamuchira kumahofisi enzanga.
Muna 2019, Cleveland City Council inonzi yakave kanzuru yekutanga yeMidwest uye yechina yenyika kupa vanopomerwa mudare redzimba kodzero yekupa zano. Legal Aid neUnited Way vakavhura chirongwa che$2-miriyoni pagore muna Chikunguru wapfuura. Magweta eLegal Aid akapinda munzeve yega yega yekudzingwa kweCleveland uye anomiririra chero mutengi ari muhurombo nemaitiro emubatanidzwa aine mwana mudiki pamba.
Kurongedzera gweta
Zvikamu makumi maviri kubva muzana zvebhajeti reLegal Aid rinouya nemubatanidzwa Legal Services Corp.
Legal Aid inowanawo mari kubva kune mamwe masangano ehurumende, pamwe nemafandesheni, mafemu ezvemitemo, mabhizinesi nevanopa rubatsiro. Inogadzirisa Jam yeRuramisiro fundraiser yekudonha kwega kwega, iine magweta emimhanzi. Jam yegore rapfuura yakaenda chaiyo uye yakawana $75,000, nemari shoma.
Kutsvaga rubatsiro, kupa kana kuzvipira, bata Legal Aid pa lasclev.org Kana 888-817-3777.
Dzvanya pano kuti uverenge chinyorwa chizere muCleveland Jewish News.