Opening Doors!

Immigrant agency vital for newcomers in a changing community

Mark Puleo

Recently, the Brazilian Journal sat down with Antonio Amaya, the Executive Director of La Comunidad, which has served the immigrant community in Everett and the surrounding area for almost a decade. Mr. Amaya, who has been with the organization for almost eight years, relates how La Comunidad has grown into a highly visible part of the fabric of Everett, a welcoming place for immigrants for over a hundred years.

When was La Comunidad founded?

It was founded on May 1, 1999. We have been here in Everett ever since. Our mission is to educate our immigrant community in a general sense on issues that affect all immigrants, such as immigration, health issues, workers’ rights and taxes. People who work in the United States have an obligation to pay taxes.

Is that true regardless of immigration status?

Yes, exactly. It is regardless of immigration status. La Comunidad was founded with the idea that Everett did not have many community centers that helped the Latino community specifically, and the immigrant community generally. At that time, many immigrants were coming to Everett from places like Somerville, Cambridge, Chelsea and elsewhere due to increases in rent. Those who came started to invest in the community – buy homes and open up small businesses like the kind you see on Broadway and Norwood Street today. This was possible because we had the idea of giving them the tools they needed to educate themselves in how to become better members of the American society.

How many people do you currently serve?

In a year, we serve between 3,000 to 3,500 people in different ways – immigration services, social services, English classes, citizenship classes, even literacy classes for people who did not go to or complete school in their native countries.

When you say “social services” what do you mean by that?

We are talking about people who come here to ask if we have services for obtaining access to health care, for example. While we do not have the tools over here, we do have the information to send these people to the right places or give referrals to the agencies where they can get the right services. Also, we help people fill out job applications and housing applications.

How do you financially survive?

That is a very important question. Initially, when La Comunidad started we received the support of many private foundations. After three years, we were no longer eligible to receive those grants. From 2003 until now, the people who we serve play a fundamental role in supporting the agency through small fees, which are based on a sliding scale of ability to pay.
 
How has the organization evolved in the time you have been here and how has Everett evolved at the same time?

The agency has been growing year by year not only in our budget but also the number of people we serve. It is because we do not treat people as customers, but as family. We give them the trust that every single document we handle and every single service we provide puts them in good hands; and we do the best to ensure that they know that they will not be taken advantage of when they come here. Also, it is important to tell the people the truth when they come if we can help them or not.

I’m glad La Comunidad started in Everett as we have had a good relationship with the city. I can say that Everett has definitely been a place where we feel very comfortable, especially when we consider the very good connections we made with various churches and Everett City Hall, because these places know they can refer people to us without having to worry.

Are there more immigrants today than almost ten years ago when La Comunidad opened?

Yes, definitely yes. For me, Everett is one of the best places where people look to live. I think it’s due to good schools. Many immigrant families are coming here especially because the school system is excellent. The streets are safe. Families want to live in a place they can trust, and from 1999 through today’s date this is why people are moving here. I can see the difference when I walk the streets, like Norwood Street. I believe in 1999 there were not so many businesses there. It’s different; it’s revitalized and immigrants are making the difference.

There is a perception sometimes that immigrants are not willing to learn English or do not want to. How do you respond to that?

My experience is that immigrants are more than willing to learn English. When immigrants first arrive, they try to get two jobs right away to survive because they do not have a place to live, a job to get income and usually receive the lowest wages. At that point, the typical immigrant may not have the time or the money to take English classes. After a while, they will not have the same job – it’s usually better and they have more resources to enroll in an English class and more time to study. They want to do this; especially those with children in school who want to help them with homework or go to parent-teacher meetings.