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Welcome
to the website for Political Asylum Project of Austin (PAPA).
PAPA’s mission is fairly straightforward: “Political Asylum
Project of Austin (PAPA) exists to provide free and low-cost legal
services and education to promote justice for immigrants and refugees
in Central Texas.”
For me, I suppose it is even more clear-cut than that. I believe that
the core of our mission is simply to promote justice in Central Texas.
Despite the often quite complicated issues involved in providing access
to justice for immigrants, the concept behind PAPA is quite
uncomplicated. We must try to ensure justice for the clients we serve.
If we allow injustice for one person or one group, we risk justice for
all.
In the past couple of years, PAPA has seen great growth and great
change. Board and staff have engaged in strategic planning to make sure
PAPA is able to serve our clients well into the future and to meet new
and emerging needs. We have seen growing need and demand for our
services along with a growing debate over immigration policy in the
U.S. At all levels of our organization, board, staff, clients and
volunteers, PAPA has sought and received greater expertise, greater
support and greater commitment to our cause.
By August of 2005, PAPA had already served more clients than in all of
2004. This trend is likely to continue and may even accelerate. Please
take a look at the programs and services we offer described on this
website. The need for them expands unabated.
The future will undoubtedly bring new challenges and new opportunities
as demand for our programs grows and the legal and psychosocial needs
of our clients expand. We will be required to adjust and perhaps add to
our services. As the policy debate regarding immigration in the U.S.
rages on, we will be required more than ever to advocate for justice.
These new demands will require new resources, including increased
financial support, greater levels of expertise and an expanded
volunteer base. We will depend even more than ever before on our
community in Central Texas to meet these challenges. These web pages
contain a host of information about PAPA and what we do. I hope you may
have some time to look them over. If you feel as passionately about
promoting justice in Central Texas as we do, there are several pages
describing how you can get involved and help!
Chris Jimmerson
January 2006
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