April 2023

South Dakota Voices for Peace

The Monthly: April 2023

South Dakota Voices For Peace
 
The Monthly

Mission:  South Dakota Voices for Peace builds power and enables healing in immigrant refugee, and Muslim communities by amplifying their voices in solidarity with all who dismantle bigotry and racism.

Vision:  We imagine a South Dakota that is diverse, inclusive, and anti-racist.

SDVFP has four programming areas: Education/Training, Outreach/Civic Engagement, Legal Services, and Rapid Response. 
Here are some of our exciting areas of impact:

MEDICAID / MEDICAID EXPANSION 

UPDATE

Medicaid Expansion goes into effect July 1, 2023 in South Dakota!

As pandemic benefits are expiring, thousands of South Dakotans may become ineligible for Medicaid in the coming weeks.  If you received a letter from DSS to renew benefits, please make sure to respond as soon as possible.  If you have been disenrolled in Medicaid, applications for Medicaid Expansion are open on July 1st.

Please visit https://communityhealthcare.net/get-covered-sd/medicaid-unwinding/ for resources 

With the new South Dakota Medicaid rule changes, everyone on Medicaid must renew their coverage.  Please visit dss.sd.gov to call or email your local office with updated contact information.

Please make sure to follow our social media platforms to stay up to date on the news and information about Medicaid Expansion.
INTRODUCING

JESSICA WALTON,
​Our New Community Health Worker



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South Dakota Voice for Peace is proud to announce our new Community Health Worker has officially joined the Voices team. Jessica Walton has many years of experience working with our immigrant communities in Sioux Falls.    She will join our other Community Health Worker, Erica Aguilar in connecting our multilingual communities with the services they need.

You might have heard the term Community Health Worker around the State more within the past year, and that is mainly because South Dakota has received Federal funding to create and grow the Community Health Worker profession. Hospitals and community organizations are hiring and investing in Community Health Workers to serve as a bridge between community members and larger hard to navigate systems such as Healthcare or Social Services. If you want to learn more about what being a Community Health Worker means and how to possibly incorporate it into your organization go to https://chwsd.org
ACP ENROLLMENT

NAVIGATOR TRAINING 

Join us on Monday May 1st at 5:30pm at the Downtown Public Library in Sioux Falls!  Our team will be training and empowering others to become Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP) Enrollment Navigators.

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Affordable Connectivity Program, commonly referred to as ACP, is a federal benefit that offers a $30 discount ($75 if a household lives on tribal land) on a household's monthly internet bill.  

A household is eligible to receive this benefit if their income is at 200% or below the FPL or if they (or their dependents) are current recipients of: Medicaid, SNAP, WIC, Free and Reduced Lunch, and more! Check out affordableconnectivity.gov for more information about eligibility. 

We will have office hours through the end of May. 
Follow this link for our office hours. 
LEGAL SERVICES UPDATE

This week, after months of working with our client, we filed a U visa petition on their behalf. U visas are available to victims of crimes who have suffered substantial physical or mental abuse as a result of having been a victim of criminal activity in the United States. Additionally, the victim must prove that they were helpful, or are likely to be helpful to law enforcement in the investigation or prosecution of the crime. The policy goal behind U visas is to strengthen the ability of law enforcement agencies to investigate and prosecute cases of domestic violence, sexual assault, trafficking, and other crimes, and to protect victims of crime who have suffered substantial mental or physical abuse due to the qualifying crime.

On average, from start to finish, a complete U visa packet typically takes at least a couple of months to gather evidence in order to make it the strongest possible petition for our client. All members of our legal team play a key role in gathering as much evidence as possible to prove that our client suffered substantial harm and deserves a pathway to U.S. citizenship as a result of the harm they suffered.

We are South Dakota's only free immigration legal services program.  Our staff navigate the complexities of immigration court over extensive periods of time so that our clients can focus on healing and being. Your donations ensure our services are free for our clients.  You can support our work by making a financial investment here.  


EID MUBARAK CARDS!

We are excited to announce that our locally designed and printed Eid Mubarak Cards are available in our online store! 

With the help of Notable Press, the artistic vision of Kishwar Nigar was brought to life. Each card is $6 and you may purchase a package of 6 for $30.

Eid ul Adha will be at the end of June. Get your cards now so that you are able to wish your Muslim friends, neighbors and colleagues a Happy Eid!
COHORTS OF COURAGE:

YOUTH ADVOCATES

We are taking applications until April 30th for our 2023 Cohort of Courage: Youth Advocates!  Cohort of Courage is one of South Dakota Voices for Peace's initiatives in fighting bigotry and racism in our communities.  Hearing directly from social justice leadersa nd experts, participants will develop their social justice leadership skills and learn how to take an idea and put it into aciton.  Cohort of Courage: Youth Advocates is open to BIPOC youth, ages 16-24! 

The deadline to apply is April 30th.  Apply Today!

Do you know a youth who is passionate about social justice?  Please share with them today!

bystander to UPSTANDER

Training

Our bystander to UPSTANDER Intervention training is a 60-minute introduction to responding in safe and impactful ways to acts of discrimination, hate, and bigotry, whether in the workplace, a public space, or at home.  Participants learn how to safely disrupt these situations and bring the target of the incident back into belonging.

We provide these training sessions to educators, organizations, business professionals, concerned citizens.
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To learn more or schedule a training, please email jen@southdakotavoicesforpeace.org!
STAY COOL with HOT SWAG!

Our online store is open! 
Support our work by proudly wearing our shirts, displaying our bumper stickers and buttons, and more! 
You can either pick up your purchases here at our offices or choose to have them mailed to you!  








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Support Our Work!
Copyright © 2023 South Dakota Voices for Peace, All rights reserved.

Our mailing address is:
South Dakota Voices for Peace
P.O. Box 600
Sioux Falls, SD 57101

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