Celebrating our powerful movement.

Hello friend,

TIRRC is officially 20 years old! What started as a small group of community leaders has blossomed into a powerful movement of immigrants and refugees working to build a Tennessee where we all belong. Celebrate with us by contributing to our 20th anniversary giving campaign today.

I’ve been at TIRRC for 17 of our 20 powerful years, having joined in 2006, just three years after the organization was founded. Immigrant communities around the country were rising up in protest against a harmful federal immigration bill, and Tennessee was no exception. In my second week at TIRRC, we mobilized over 10,000 people to join together to march and speak out against these harmful provisions in the House of Representatives. This is how the movement for immigrant rights in Tennessee was born, and I'm proud to have been part of building our power ever since.

Over the last 20 years, we've seen time and time again how community organizing creates transformative change, yet there is still work to do to reach every immigrant community in the state. With your support, we will expand resources to immigrant and refugee youth and workers at the forefront of social justice movements, and we will develop the skills of young leaders and adult workers to build the capacity of the organizing field in Tennessee. 

Will you make a gift to help us continue building the Tennessee we imagine, one where every immigrant and refugee in the state has the tools to organize and improve their community?  We are raising $50,000 to celebrate our 20th anniversary, and we need your support to build a strong foundation for the next 20 years.

To meet today’s challenges, our communities will need to build an unprecedented level of power capable of both sustaining a long-term vision and addressing daily attacks on immigration and voting rights, and to combat issues facing our community such as gun violence, climate change, and more. This sort of power won’t come easily. It will require community organizers to come together in the thousands to build coalitions, develop alliances, and elevate public narratives that promote our vision of social justice and true democracy. And with your support, I know we will be successful.

To a better Tennessee,

Leticia Alvarez, Senior Programs Director

2023 Nashville Immigrant and Refugee Mayoral Forum

Our communities are looking for elected officials who are willing to boldly and courageously lead our city to be one where families from all walks of life, whether Black or brown, working class or immigrant, are all able to thrive. Join us to hear from mayoral candidates on their positions regarding key issues affecting our communities, such as climate change, gun reform, the preservation of democracy, and more.

Mon, Jun 5, 6:00pm-8:30pm CDT

Plaza Mariachi

3955 Nolensville Pk, Nashville, TN 37211

Nuestras comunidades están buscando a oficiales electos con liderazgo audaz y valiente para dirigir a nuestra ciudad hacías una donde todas nuestras familias, con piel negra y marrón, de clase obrera o inmigrante, puedan prosperar. Únase a nosotros para escuchar de candidatos sobre sus posiciones con respecto a cuestiones fundamentales afectando a nuestras comunidades, como el cambio climático, reformas a legislación sobre las armas de fuego, la preservación de nuestra democracia, y mucho más.

Mon, Jun 5, 6:00pm-8:30pm CDT

Plaza Mariachi

3955 Nolensville Pk, Nashville, TN 37211

More information about candidate involvement and eligibility can be found here.

TIRRC Celebrates Historic Investment in Immigrant Communities in Davidson County

For Immediate Release
June 7, 2022

Contact: Emily Cupples | emily@amplifiedps.com | 901-598-6161

TENNESSEE IMMIGRATION AND REFUGEE RIGHTS COALITION OPEN DOORS TO NEW COMMUNITY HUB AND HEADQUARTERS

Metro Council voted to invest $1.8m+ COVID recovery dollars towards critical immigration legal services 

NASHVILLE - Today, the Metropolitan Government of Nashville & Davidson County voted (in a voice vote) to advance a $1,820,585 investment between TIRRC and Tennessee Justice For Our Neighbors (TNJFON) to expand access to immigration legal services for thousands of Nashvillians. As part of the American Rescue Plan (ARP), passed by Congress last year, billions of dollars were allocated to local and state governments across the country to help in the COVID-19 pandemic recovery efforts. Today’s vote marks a historic and unprecedented investment towards immigrant and refugee communities in Davidson County.

We applaud Metro Council in joining localities across the country in strengthening our immigration legal services infrastructure by choosing to boldly support and invest in immigrant and refugee communities. With these funds, TIRRC and TNJFON will be able to scale up immigration legal services, providing quality pro-bono assistance to Davidson County residents to access immigration relief and work permits through DACA, green card applications, naturalization, asylum, and more. These opportunities are a lifeline for individuals and families - protecting people from deportation, keeping families together, and promoting economic mobility.

“Immigrants have been on the frontline of this pandemic - keeping us safe, healthy, and fed, but our communities have been largely left out of COVID recovery due to lack of immigration status.  With this historic investment, we can take a small step to honor our immigrant neighbors by increasing access to high quality pro-bono immigration legal services services that will allow more people to access work permits, green cards, and US Citizenship. We know that Congress is long overdue to enact widespread immigration relief, but thanks to the investment today by Metro, we can ensure that we're doing everything we can at the local level to assist with providing critical protections that keep families together. When we organize, we win. This is a massive victory for the immigrant and refugee community.” - Lisa Sherman Nikolaus, Executive Director, Tennessee Immigration and Refugee Rights Coalition

“Access to an immigration attorney is scarce and unevenly distributed across the United States but it is especially scarce here. We live in an immigration legal services desert.  The urgency of the current humanitarian crisis situations underscore the importance of building the legal immigration services capacity that our community has long needed.” - Tessa Lemos del Pino, Executive Director, Tennessee Justice for Our Neighbors

“I come from a family of immigrants. My parents, Maria and Francisco Sepulveda, came to this country at 14 and 15 with elementary school education. Life is not equatable. In the 80s they were finally able to establish their legal status. The trajectory of their life and mine was changed by this. We have been given as a city the opportunity to invest in an equitable way our COVID-19 recovery funds. This is not only beneficial to the immigrant community. This is beneficial to all of Nashville. It's the ability to get a driver's license, open bank accounts, and report safety concerns. It’s the ability to keep mixed status families together. We cannot wait on Congress when there is action for us to take at the local level. I am proud to be a sponsor today because Nashville will be able to change the lives of people with backgrounds just like my parents. And I am proud that I was able to have a small part in it.”- Councilwoman Sandra Sepulveda

“As much as I want to thrive in Nashville, my home, and continue to work for healthcare providers, DACA remains in jeopardy. This year could be the last year DACA recipients can renew. The DACA program will be heard in the Fifth Circuit court in July with a decision expected soon after. DACA recipients like myself could face having to leave our homes and our jobs. Funding for legal services couldn't come at a more crucial time, especially for the 2,000+ Nashville DACA recipients like me who need to renew ASAP but don't have the means to do so. Having an attorney help you complete your immigration paperwork alleviates the anxiety and stress of trying to navigate complicated legal documents on your own.” - Damaris Villalva, DACA recipient and TIRRC member

BACKGROUND

For decades, Tennessee has been an immigration legal services desert - the infrastructure has not kept pace with our growing and diverse immigrant and refugee communities. This has largely been the case across the country over the last few years. The pandemic exacerbated the racial inequities and disproportionate effects towards Black and brown communities. What we also learned from the pandemic is that it takes a collective effort for all of us to succeed. Individualistic approaches in trying times will only continue to further marginalize all of our communities as a whole. This crisis is showing all of us that our health and well-being are dependent on our neighbors. We are only as safe and healthy as the most vulnerable members of our communities, and ensuring their well-being is how we ensure our own. This historic investment to our immigrant community for pandemic recovery efforts is one vital piece towards our collective effort in striving for racial and economic equity. This is a momentous initiative aimed at mitigating the pandemic’s disproportionate harm to low-income and Black and brown communities and seeding transformative policies in Davidson County. 

While we continue to urge the federal government to provide permanent protections for all immigrants across the country, this major investment showcases how local governments can step up and play such a crucial role in creating communities where everyone has what they need to thrive. No matter where we come from or what we look like, we all need each other to live safe and healthy lives. 

For more information, visit our policy memo.

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TIRRC is a statewide, immigrant and refugee-led collaboration whose mission is to empower immigrants and refugees throughout Tennessee to develop a unified voice, defend their rights, and create an atmosphere in which they are recognized as positive contributors to the state. Since its founding in 2001, TIRRC has worked to develop immigrant leadership, build the capacity of its immigrant-led member organizations, help immigrant community members understand and engage in the civic process, and educate the public about policies that would better promote integration of new immigrants and facilitate their full participation in US society. In just a few years TIRRC has grown from a grassroots network of community leaders into one of the most diverse and effective coalitions of its kind, a model for emerging immigrant rights organizations in the Southeast and throughout the United States.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: TIRRC Launches New Eloisa Salazar Event Center in Antioch

For Immediate Release
March 17, 2022

Contact: Lisa Sherman Luna, lisa@tnimmigrant.org, 646-584-5281

Following setbacks due to pandemic, TIRRC officially launches new Eloisa Salazar Event Center

As the COVID-19 pandemic stabilizes in Tennessee, TIRRC will begin to open its doors to the public for event rentals at their vibrant Antioch neighborhood home

Where: TIRRC Headquarters, 3310 Ezell Rd., Nashville, TN 37211

What: Media tours and interviews with Executive Director, Lisa Sherman Luna

When: Monday, March 21st at 9:00am and 3:00pm

NASHVILLE - TIRRC is excited to officially launch the Eloisa Salazar Event Center, a state-of-the-art 2,970 square foot event venue designed for community gatherings and celebrations with a capacity for 375 people. As a standout new event space in Antioch, the Eloisa Salazar Event Center is available for booking private event rentals, including weddings, quinceañeras, parties, meetings, conferences, and concerts. TIRRC will open its books for private event rentals beginning Monday, March 21st, 2022. The Eloisa Salazar Event Center is made possible through the generosity of the Mike Curb Foundation. 

The organization recently closed its Tennessee is Home capital campaign debt-free, raising $2.9 million since 2019 despite the pandemic. The new event rental center will serve as a revenue-generating asset to fuel the organization’s powerful work of organizing immigrant and refugee communities. TIRRC’s new 7,000 square foot home serves as a vital community hub and unique event space in the heart of immigrant and refugee communities. 

In addition to the Eloisa Salazar Event Center, TIRRC’s headquarters features:

• Nashville’s second soccer mini-pitch created in partnership with Nashville Soccer Club and Ingram Charities;

• Several amenities including TIRRC’s catering kitchen, moveable furniture, small meeting rooms, retractable garage doors for indoor/outdoor events, and a recommended vendor list of immigrant and refugee-owned businesses;

• TIRRC’s classroom for meetings and small gatherings outfitted with hybrid meeting technology;

• The Frist Foundation Community Gardens, a community playground in memory of Thomas Rayson with support from the HCA Healthcare Foundation, and 13 pieces of art by 11 different artists.

Lisa Sherman Luna, Executive Director of TIRRC, said: “We are thrilled to open the Eloisa Salazar Event Center for rentals and look forward to hosting community events, creating memories during special celebrations, and convening our neighbors and communities for learning and dreaming.

We founded this social enterprise to support immigrant and refugee vendors and to showcase Tennessee's cultural diversity with a colorful, innovative, and welcoming event space in Nashville. Our unique event space showcases incredible artwork from local immigrant and refugee artists and truly encompasses what it means to build a space where we can all belong and thrive.

When we launched this campaign in 2019, we never imagined the challenges that lay ahead of us - but thanks to the generous support of our community, we're ready to launch the next phase of our new home  that will fuel our powerful work for years to come. We thank the 500 donors and the Marlene and Spencer Hays Foundation for making a generous gift that helped successfully close our capital campaign. We are eternally grateful for all the support over the years that made a successful capital campaign and this beautiful community space possible."

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TIRRC is a statewide, immigrant and refugee-led collaboration whose mission is to empower immigrants and refugees throughout Tennessee to develop a unified voice, defend their rights, and create an atmosphere in which they are recognized as positive contributors to the state. Since its founding in 2001, TIRRC has worked to develop immigrant leadership, build the capacity of its immigrant-led member organizations, help immigrant community members understand and engage in the civic process, and educate the public about policies that would better promote integration of new immigrants and facilitate their full participation in US society. In just a few years TIRRC has grown from a grassroots network of community leaders into one of the most diverse and effective coalitions of its kind, a model for emerging immigrant rights organizations in the Southeast and throughout the United States.