Democracy Counsel

About San Diego

San Diego, with a population of nearly 1.5 million people, is the second largest city in California, and the eighth largest city in the country. Known for its beautiful year-round climate, miles of gorgeous beaches, and its small city vibe, San Diego is also in the midst of a dramatic political realignment, with increased opportunity for effecting meaningful change at the city, county, and through its representation at the state and federal level.

San Diego sits on the U.S. - Mexico Border just north of Tijuana, and the two cities comprise the world’s largest metropolitan, binational region. San Ysidro, one of three border crossings in the region, is consistently cited as the world’s busiest port of entry. San Diego is also the number one refugee resettlement site in California, with more than 86,000 thousand resettled from the Middle East, Southeast Asia, and Africa since 1975.

Refugee resettlement and the cross-border character of the region make San Diego a rich blend of racial/ethnic, linguistic, and country-of-birth diversity. The region presents unique opportunities to be on the front lines of the fight for human rights, and to be a part of a public interest community that is incubating cutting edge refugee and racial justice policy for the entire country.

About PANA

The Partnership for the Advancement of New Americans (PANA) is a non-profit, non-partisan organization fighting to advance the full economic, social, and civic inclusion of refugees in San Diego, throughout California, and across the country. PANA works at the intersection of African, Middle Eastern, Muslim, and South Asian (AMEMSA) refugee communities impacted by racial/ethnic profiling, religious bias, increased government surveillance and harassment, and poverty among the many issues affecting our refugee communities.

PANA advances significant policy reforms at the city, county, and state level to ensure newly resettled refugees have equal access to family sustaining jobs, quality and healthy homes, and meaningful education that translates to upskilling in the workforce. In addition to policy and legal advocacy, PANA uses an integrated voter engagement approach to build and leverage deep community networks, develop community leaders, and establish a civic engagement infrastructure to amplify the voice, visibility, and impact of our community.

Position

Democracy Counsel

PANA is hiring an Inclusive Democracy Counsel to lead and expand our work to advance the full civic inclusion of Black, Arab, Middle Eastern, Southeast Asian, and Muslim (BAMEMSA) refugee and immigrant communities and further explore and push for policy and legal solutions that secure the fundamental right to equal access to and their full participation in our democracy.


The Democracy Counsel will report directly to the Executive Director. 

Responsibilities

  • Be an active participant in local and  statewide language access and democracy coalitions.

  • Lead collaborative advocacy strategies around democracy reform.Build or be part of a network of statewide BAMEMSA organizations and develop collective, collaborative advocacy strategies around democracy reform, Census reform, resources, and redistricting.

  • Grow PANA’s expertise and partnerships with academics to develop evidence-based policy and litigation strategies, and draft and lead legislation to eliminate barriers to democratic participation.

  • Develop a deeper, ongoing relationship with local election officials in San Diego County and other counties with high concentrations of BAMEMSA voters.

  • Develop pilot proposals for improved and expanded bilingual poll worker recruitment, training, and placement; and pilot expanded, in-language outreach and votable ballots in non-Section 203 languages.

  • Conduct  language access policy briefings for Boards of Supervisors in target counties to achieve buy-in for language access pilots.

  • Supervise PANA's civic engagement manager. 


Qualifications and Skills Required

  • J.D. and California bar admission.

  • A minimum of two years of legal experience.

  • Experience conducting legal research and  analyzing legislation and policy,

  • Demonstrated commitment to refugee and immigrant communities, and racial equity.

  • Strong writing and communication skills.

  • Ability to juggle multiple priorities and work effectively with a team in a rapidly moving environment.

  • Extremely organized with close attention to detail and accuracy.

  • Ability to speak Arabic, Urdu, Farsi, Kurdish, Vietnamese, or Somali strongly preferred. 

  • Knowledge of Microsoft Word, Excel and Outlook, and sophisticated use of technology.

  • Ability to exercise sound judgment and work with an extremely diverse refugee and immigrant staff and community population.



Compensation

Competitive salary commensurate with experience.Excellent benefits package, including:

  • full health care benefits; 

  • paid sick, family, and parental leave; 

  • employer 3% match contribution to 401K;

  • 120 hours of vacation per year in addition to the office being closed the last two weeks of the year.

To Apply

Applicants should email a resume, writing sample, and cover letter to admin@panasd.org.