New York Lawyers for the Public Interest (NYLPI) is seeking applications for a Community Organizer in its Health Justice program. NYLPI is a nonprofit civil rights law firm committed to advancing equality and civil rights through community lawyering and partnerships with the private bar.
The Health Justice (HJ) program brings a civil rights and immigrant rights focus to health care advocacy in New York City. In partnership with individuals and community-based organizations, we use a wide range of advocacy tools to challenge health disparities and ensure access to high quality health care for medically underserved communities. Our work is aimed at eliminating racial and ethnic discrimination, and systemic and institutional barriers to care. Current campaigns focus on promoting language access and immigrant access to health care, addressing the impact of hospital closings on low-income communities of color, improving access to physical education in schools, and addressing social determinants of health.
The Community Organizer will be an integral part of the Health Justice team, working alongside attorneys and advocates to develop and implement the program’s campaigns and cases. In addition to community outreach, the organizer will be responsible for helping to develop community campaigns; lobbying; building coalitions of community members and community-based organizations and taking a leadership role where necessary; communicating about advocacy campaigns to diverse audiences; convening trainings and meetings; creating outreach materials; assisting with factual development for litigation; providing technical assistance to community leaders and activists; and educating the public, elected officials and the media about health justice issues.
QUALIFICATIONS:
Demonstrated commitment to health justice, racial justice, and/or immigrant rights.
Strong writing, organizational, analytic, and public speaking skills.
Ability to work both collaboratively and independently and to juggle multiple tasks under time constraints.
Excellent strategic judgment and the drive to originate and effectuate challenging campaigns.
Flexibility, creativity, and initiative.
Experience working with community-based organizations and individual clients.
Experience building coalitions, leading collaborative efforts, and developing agendas and working on advocacy campaigns.
Experience with legislative/policy advocacy and lobbying.
Strong interpersonal and communications skills and ability to work and communicate with a diverse audience: staff, organizational partners and community members.
Experience working with traditional and social media.
Fluency in a second language, particularly Spanish, strongly preferred.
At least two years of relevant (health justice and/or organizing) experience strongly preferred. Exceptional candidates with less experience will be considered.
NYLPI pioneered the practice of community lawyering in the five boroughs of New York City. Our interdisciplinary teams of advocates use every tool available – community organizing, impact litigation and individual representation, policy advocacy, media, pro bono partnerships, and public education – to solve seemingly intractable problems, develop leaders, and build collective power to achieve justice and equality. We strive to create equal access to health care, achieve equality of opportunity and self-determination for people with disabilities, ensure immigrant opportunity, strengthen local non-profits, and secure environmental justice for low-income communities of color. The Community Organizer will work both independently and in collaboration with other community organizers, staff attorneys, social workers, advocates, and media and lobbying consultants.
How to apply
Please send applications by April 30, 2015 to jobs@nylpi.org with the words “Attention: HJ Community Organizer Position.” Applications will be considered on a rolling basis, and must include a cover letter, resume, short writing sample (3-5 pages, preferably an advocacy piece such as a blog or op-ed) and three references (including daytime telephone numbers). Please mention where you saw this posting in your cover letter. To learn more about NYLPI, visit www.nylpi.org.
NYLPI offers a competitive salary and comprehensive employer-paid benefits, including health insurance, short and long term disability and life insurance, an outstanding retirement savings plan and fifteen (15) days of vacation during the first year of employment. NYLPI is an Equal Employment Opportunity employer and actively recruits people of color, individuals with disabilities, LGBT people, people who have grown up in poverty, and former recipients of public assistance. We are committed to advancing social equality and civil rights in our advocacy, and we value the dynamism and perspective that staff diversity brings to the work and culture of the office. We seek to maintain a staff that is diverse along many axes, including but not limited to race, ethnicity, and national origin; disability; socioeconomic background; and sexual orientation and gender identity. NYLPI recognizes the ongoing need to foster and support diversity at all levels of the organization.