Helping Immigrant Navigate Government

New York Times: The forums are part of a new program, run by the mayor's office, that is intended to improve the relationship between city government and immigrants who are often wary of local authorities or unaware of city services available to them. One N.Y.C., One Nation, as the program is called, is in some ways an acknowledgment that despite Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg's vocal support for the city's immigrants, too many of them remain cut off from the mainstream. The first forums have found many immigrants distrustful of the local police, unengaged with their elected officials and unable to find reliable legal help for their immigration problems. "How do we fundamentally engage our immigrant communities to help them understand that their voice matters?" asked Fatima A. Shama, commissioner of the Mayor's Office of Immigrant Affairs, which is coordinating the program. The initiative, which began in February, also represents a shift of emphasis for the Bloomberg administration, which has spent significant energy rallying mayors and business leaders to lobby for a broad overhaul of federal immigration policy - only to see its campaign stall in Congress. Instead of looking toward Washington, the new program focuses on government at its most humble: police precinct councils, community board meetings, zoning laws. While local officials and agencies directly affect immigrants' quality of life and sense of empowerment and security, Ms. Shama said immigrants rarely connect with them.