Community Organizing & Civic Engagement

Immigrant Justice Project, #Citizenship4All

HANA Center is one of the few Asian American organizations in greater Chicago that organizes and empowers community members to advocate for immigrant justice. Korean Americans provide a strong and steady voice at the municipal, state, and federal levels regarding the importance of comprehensive immigration reform.

In response to the rise of federal attacks on our immigrant communities, HANA Center helped pass HB1312 as a part of our Safety and Action for Liberation Together (S.A.L.T.) platform earlier this year. In 2024, HANA also led the “One Driver’s License for ALL” campaign which saw the State of Illinois issue a standardized driver’s license to everyone, regardless of immigration status. This replaced the Temporary Visitor's Driver's License (TVDL) previously held by undocumented immigrants, which made them vulnerable due to its distinctive color and appearance. The elimination of TVDL is a significant victory that enhances safety for all immigrants in Illinois. 

Past campaigns also include fighting for more inclusive health care (#HealthCare4All), supporting DACA (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrival) and DAPA (Deferred Action for Parents of Americans and Lawful Permanent Residents), ensuring expansion of educational scholarships and financial aid (#Education4All), and making sure that Illinois has a fair, progressive tax system (#FairTaxes4All).

Civic Engagement

Understanding that civic participation and civic engagement is fundamental to larger movement building work, HANA Center integrates civic engagement work into all aspects of the organization’s programs year-round. Additionally, HANA Center works closely with Chicago Board of Elections and Cook County Clerk’s Office to combat voter suppression and increase immigrant voter access.

HANA Center advocates on the state level to fund crucial programs like Access 2 Justice (A2J) and the Immigrant Services Line Item. HANA also advocates for the passage of a more progressive State tax in Illinois, so taxpayers’ rates correlate directly with their income. A fair tax means that 97% of taxpayers will get a tax cut or pay the same, and will raise more than $6 billion a year to invest in schools and other critical priorities for our state. 

Coalition Building

HANA Center strongly believes in the importance and power of coalition building. HANA Center is the Chicago affiliate of the National Korean American Service & Education Consortium (NAKASEC). It is a member of the Illinois Coalition of Immigrant & Refugee Rights (ICIRR), Advancing Justice-Chicago’s PAVE Collaboration, the Korean American Human Service Providers Council, Illinois is Our Home, Responsible Budget Coalition, and works with a myriad of other partners including community-based organizations, government agencies, small businesses, religious institutions and foundations.

Get Involved

If you are interested in getting involved with HANA’s Community Organizing and Civic Engagement efforts, please refer to our Volunteer page.  

If you are a high school student, please refer to our Youth Empowerment & Organizing page or contact Abby (amendoza@hanacenter.org) for Chicago location or Andrew (adelasalas@hanacenter.org) for suburban location.