July 18 2017 Community
The foremost barrier to middle class status remains the absence of a quality education. As Legal Services Alabama continues to expand its mission of fighting entrenched poverty, it is preparing to launch an initiative this fall to challenge obstacles to educational access for low income children. Terrika Shaw, a Staff Attorney in LSA’s Birmingham office, …
July 12 2017 Community
By Stephen Last “It’s a job, and I enjoy being around the kids.” This is how my client described his job of 12 years working at the public school systems where he is a classroom aide helping teach children about nutrition. My client has spent virtually his whole life in Montgomery. He was a child …
July 10 2017 Community
byTracie McMillan Journalist Tracie McMillan shares her firsthand experience with the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), and the confrontation with her own assumptions about poverty, in this op-ed piece from The New York Times. https://www.nytimes.com/2017/07/08/opinion/sunday/poverty-snap-food-stamps-.html?action=click&pgtype=Homepage&clickSource=story-heading&module=opinion-c-col-right-region®ion=opinion-c-col-right-region&WT.nav=opinion-c-col-right-region#story-continues-1
July 10 2017 Community
By Desiree Taylor More than 100 people from across the state gathered at the Historic Brown Chapel in Selma, Ala., July 8 to get informed about Alabama’s new law regarding voting rights. Sponsored by the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Alabama and Legal Services Alabama, the Voting Rights Restoration Training attracted students, community leaders, …
July 10 2017 Community
By Rachelle Greczyn Our client has participated in the Section 8 housing program since 2008: this government backed program provides vouchers to assist low-income tenants with the cost of housing. In the fall of 2016, she let her landlord know that she wasn’t going to renew her lease, and planned on moving to a safer …
July 06 2017 Community
by Alabama Live, WSFA Legal Services Alabama Executive Director Artur Davis and Communications and Development Associate for ACLU of Alabama Rebecca Seung-Bickley, spoke about a joint effort on WSFA’s Alabama Live broadcast yesterday, concerning the upcoming Voting Rights Restoration Training. Many low-income individuals who have “served their time and paid their debt to society,” may now …
July 05 2017 Community
https://www.al.com/news/index.ssf/2017/07/alabama_is_6th_poorest_state_i.html
July 03 2017 Community
https://www.al.com/news/index.ssf/2017/06/thousands_of_alabamians_could.html?ath=da081dc00532540e18b06625c402c2c9#cmpid=nsltr_strybutton
July 03 2017 Community
Our Advocate of the Month for June is Terrika Shaw. Terrika is a Southern University Law Center graduate, who joined LSA in 2014. After a stint in our Selma office, Terrika relocated to our Birmingham office. In five years, she has proven herself as one of our most talented young lawyers, who manages to thrive …
July 03 2017 Community
By Desiree Taylor “Pay your rent or else,” may be a matter-of-fact rule for landlords and their tenants. But for Holly Ray, Managing Attorney for LSA’s Huntsville office, there are no excuses for providing a dangerous place to live or violating the protections afforded to tenants under Alabama law. Recently, she spoke about tenants’ rights …
