Free event will equip those working in social services with tools to help clients navigate civil and criminal legal services
NASHVILLE, Tenn., Sept. 15, 2022 — Legal Aid Society of Middle Tennessee and the Cumberlands, Tennessee’s largest nonprofit law firm, will be hosting a free lunch-and-learn workshop for social services workers, nonprofit leaders/organizations and nonprofit community advocates, called Be Empowered & Know Your Rights: Equipping Your Clients to Thrive, on Thursday, Sept. 22. The event, running from 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. at the Howard Building in downtown Nashville, is designed to provide tools and strategies to train social service and nonprofit staff desiring to help their clients thrive when interacting with the civil and criminal legal system. Harriet Wallace, an award-winning journalist and 2011 Pulitzer Prize finalist, will facilitate a panel discussion featuring DarKenya W. Waller, executive director of Legal Aid Society; Martesha Johnson, Nashville Metropolitan chief public defender; David Tucker Jr., executive director of Metro Human Relations Council; Tamika White, director of programs and special projects for The Equity Alliance; and Kosar Kosar, a multicultural organizer for the Tennessee Immigrant and Refugee Coalition. Topics to be discussed will include:- Navigating the civil and criminal legal systems and distinguishing between the two
- Common concerns for immigrants and refugees, especially regarding language barriers or deportation fears
- Engaging Metro government as a civil right and civic duty
- Interacting with law enforcement with confidence and wisdom
- Reclaiming your voice and activating your power
- Voting rights restoration
- Handling evictions and unresponsive landlords
- Expunging a criminal record
