Los Angeles, CA

The City of Los Angeles continues to promote naturalization and offer assistance to the immigrants who want to become U.S. citizens among its 350,000 legal permanent residents and has successfully helped 2,654 residents since joining Cities & Counties for Citizenship. Mayor Eric Garcetti re-established a partnership with U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) in 2013 to develop civic education workshops to promote citizenship in Los Angeles. The City also partnered with several community-based organizations – Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights of Los Angeles (CHIRLA), Asian Americans Advancing Justice (AAAJ), International Rescue Committee (IRC), National Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials (NALEO), and Youth Policy Institute (YPI) – to offer educational materials on immigration integration and financial education in the Citizenship Corners located in all 73 public library branches throughout the city: CHIRLA, AAAJ, and IRC offer citizenship workshops and classes like basic ESL classes and Civics class to educate applicants on the civics exam; NALEO provides citizenship information sessions, free application assistance, and financial literacy workshops; and YPI collaborates with the NALEO to provide financial education to clients receiving Citizenship Application assistance. The Mayor’s Office is also working with these organizations to increase access to micro-loans and savings for the city’s immigrant community.