We are excited to invite you to the fourth annual Statewide Immigrant and Refugee Rights Convening!

June 9-10, 2019
Hilton Harrisburg, Harrisburg PA

Pre-Registration is Closed! Tickets will be available at the door

As we continue to face an extreme anti-immigrant agenda at the federal level, it is more important than ever to build local coalitions and partnerships to defend our communities and fight for the policies we need.

This Convening will bring together members of the immigrant and refugee communities, grassroots organizations, advocates, and allies from across Pennsylvania, and will include workshops, networking sessions, and opportunities to meet with legislators to educate them on issues important to immigrant and refugee communities. 

2019 Schedule

Pre-Registration is Closed! Tickets will be available at the door.

2019 PICC Community Leader Awards

2019 PICC Community Leader Award: Wei Chen, Asian Americans United (AAU)
Wei arrived in the U.S when he was 15 years old to face racism and anti-immigrant discrimination. In 2008 and 2009 Wei Chen was one of the leaders of the South Philadelphia High student organizing, whose anti-bias and racial healing work during that struggle has won national acclaim. He helped form the South Philadelphia High Chinese Student Association and eventually led a major boycott of the school for more than eight days following persistent anti-Asian/anti-immigrant harassment. Wei works at Asian Americans United as a youth organizer and civic engagement coordinator. In 2014, Wei founded Chinatown Vote. He is on the Board of Victim/Witness Services of South Philadelphia. He was one of ten people nationally awarded a Peace First Prize fellowship to continue his organizing addressing bias harassment. In 2015, he was appointed by Mayor of Philadelphia to serve as Commissioner of Philadelphia Commission on Human Relations.

2019 PICC Youth Leader Award: Julissa Morales, Movement of Immigrant Leaders in PA (MILPA)
Julissa and her parents joined MILPA in 2014, and at the young age of 12 years old read in front of the main capitol steps a self-written speech regarding the need of a driver’s license issuance for her parents. To recognize her is to recognize her parents, who have given their volunteer time to advance immigrant rights. Julissa over the years has developed the leadership skills of a youth member and is now part of the Harrisburg City Youth Council. She has connected to other youth community members to advance for immigrant rights, to be always a helping hand and be the change in the community. She participated in painting the mural “Familias Separadas” in Harrisburg along with her mother. Julissa is a graduate of LHACC’s Youth Listo Program. She is a sweet, driven youth member that seeks to help in the common cause of others.

Keynote Speaker

Gabrielle Jackson, Co-founder and Mental Wellness Director of the UndocuBlack Network.
Gabrielle Jackson is originally from the twin isle nation of Trinidad and Tobago, and has nothing but love for the diaspora. She is a therapist and clinical social worker, and her passion and life purpose is the mental and emotional well-being of the community, with a special emphasis on Black immigrants, of course. One of the co-organizers of the Undocumented and Black Convening and one of the co-founders of the UndocuBlack Network, Gabrielle is now organizing with UBN as the Mental Wellness Director, focusing her efforts on developing the mental wellness initiative, and gathering and understanding community resources. When she’s not doing that, she enjoys reading fiction, especially Caribbean literature, and doing P90X workouts.

Pre-Registration is Closed.

• General Attendance: $110.00
• General Attendance – Sunday Only: $90.00
• PICC Member Rate (includes all staff & volunteers of PICC member organizations): $80.00
• Community Member/Youth Rate: $45.00
• Advocacy Day Only: $20.00

Tickets will be available at the door on June 9th and 10th. All tickets include admission for events and meals.

Group Registration: If your community-based organization is interested in bringing a group (5+), you can register online, or contact us directly: Prudence Powell at prudencepowell@paimmigrant.org or 215-832-3481.

Scholarships: PICC will be offering a limited number of scholarships to assist with travel and lodging costs to ensure everyone is able to attend regardless of economic status. Please apply by May 31, 2019.

Hotel Reservations: The 2019 Convening will be held at the Harrisburg Hilton just blocks from the State Capitol. The hotel is offering a discounted rate for convening participants for both Saturday and Sunday nights. Please place your reservations online using the code “CITZ”. Discount Deadline May 31, 2019

Transportation: We are not providing transportation, but participants are organizing carpools! Use this spreadsheet if you are willing to give a ride, or are looking for one!

Become a Sponsor of the 2019 Statewide Immigrant and Refugee Rights Convening and Immigrant Youth Leadership Convening! As a sponsor at any level, you will be ensuring that we are able to offer scholarships to low-income community members and youth who might otherwise be excluded from these events, and that we will have quality programming with expert speakers and trainers.