Advocacy and Policies
Lao Votes
Voting ensures that Laotian Americans are represented in local, state, and federal government. By participating in elections, they can elect officials who understand their unique needs and advocate for their interests. Local government decisions directly affect our daily lives. Issues related to schools, community parks, police and fire departments, roads, and public libraries are all influenced by local government policies. Laotian Americans can use their votes to shape these decisions and improve their communities.
Laotian American Society is here to assist and educate the community on their rights to have a voice in the government.
Language Access
In the recent Census 2020 disaggregation, it can be easily summarized that the largest group of Laotian Americans in Georgia are aging seniors with limited English. While these individuals enter their golden years, they are less independent and even more reliant on those others to sustain a good quality of life. While Laotian is considered an exotic language, the rates to contract qualified interpreters and translators is extremely unsustainable especially in the large scale. The Laotian American Society is steadfast in ensuring that no one in the community is left behind and works in tandem with local municipalities and counties to either provide materials in Lao or refer these governmental bodies to qualified Lao language experts.
Immigration
With the recent visa sanctions issued on individuals from Laos lifted, the community is ever more concerned about their status. Being that Laotian Americans were refugees of the Laotian diaspora, many of then have focused on creating a new life in the United States and often have not questioned their legal status. However, with the recent Census 2020 as well as community polls and questionnaires along with the thorough work of community partners, there is a rising concern about immigration. An alarming rate of Laotian Americans still have not seek citizenship nor attempted to pursue this in concern of bringing attention to their legal status. Many are green card holders or in many cases have entered the country legally but have lost all documents all while trying to resettle in their new home.
The Laotian American Society aims to find a solution to this by creating a safe space where we can connect these affected individuals to legal experts. Either in a seminar or 1-on – setting to answer all their concerns as well as create a plan to the next steps to securing their new roots to the United States.
Know Your Rights
Knowing rights entitled to Laotian Americans allows them to actively participate in the highest quality of life in the United States. Whether it’s in the workplace, housing, or interactions with law enforcement, understanding their rights is crucial. Additionally knowing their rights during arrests, interactions with police, and court proceedings can protect themselves against discrimination, exploitation, and unfair treatment
The Laotian American Society hosts Know Your Rights clinics to the community to educate those to be familiar and navigate the legal system effectively as well as legal protections afforded to them.
Recent Projects
Census 2020
The Census is important as it will determine representation and how much funding will go to the communities. For many Laotians, the count has been inaccurate. It’s time to reshape the future and get it right.
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Covid-19 Lao Response Team
The purpose of this response team is to provide food and sanitary goods to the community elders in the under-served communities. By supplementing the basic necessities and delivering these goods to their place of residence, it gives a peace of mind to the community seniors.
Operation Lunchbox
With school being out for the summer, many kids lose access to their school lunches. In order to supplement this, LAS have kicked off Operation Lunchbox catering to K12 students of our Laotian community in Georgia. We are making sure the kids are not left without a good meal.
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