Beth McDermott,
Reporter assisted by AI
Vermont Asylum Assistance Project executive director Jill Martin Diaz, an immigration lawyer, speaks during a Jan. 30 press conference about rising Immigration and Customs Enforcement activity in Vermont after Trump signed a slew of executive orders pushing for mass migrant deportations. Seen with U.S. Rep. Becca Balint (center) and former Lt. Gov. Molly Gray (left) of Vermont Afghan Alliance.
“Every Vermonter benefits when we protect our Constitutional freedoms, and the right to due process is not fully realized unless our neighbors have legal representation,” Mike Pieciak, state treasurer, said. “This first award is a galvanizing investment in VAAP’s ability to ensure our neighbors, friends, and community members truly enjoy America's promise of liberty and justice for all.”
“Vermont is leading the way in showing how we can come together to acknowledge human dignity and real public safety,” Kesha Ram Hinsdale, senator, said. “This award is an investment in the greatest needs our system faces to uphold the rights to which every person in our state is entitled.”
Three priorities for the Vermont Asylum Assistance Project
The infusion of funds allows VAAP to act immediately on three priority fronts.
VAAP plans to welcome its inaugural director of operations and legal assistant/paralegal who will lead efforts to streamline and strengthen the integration of pro bono and full-time volunteer attorneys into its legal services model, allowing its growing team of lawyers to focus more on legal work and client service. This strategic addition ensures coordinated support for volunteers working alongside paid staff on active VAAP cases.
VAAP is preparing to recruit three to five rural legal support workers, legal or paralegal advocates who will bring legal information, screenings, and services directly to community-based organizations spanning Vermont’s underserved geographies. Working in close partnership with trusted local institutions, these workers will act as bridges between the law and the community, ensuring culturally and linguistically responsive access to legal pathways. Rooted in lived experience and place-based relationships, this cohort will expand VAAP’s reach beyond traditional legal hubs—meeting immigrant communities where they are and reducing barriers to representation. By embedding legal capacity within rural CBOs, this initiative furthers VAAP's vision of a decentralized, community-anchored model for immigration justice across the state.
More: What the Winooski superintendent of schools said about his detention by ICE in Texas
VAAP will deploy “boots-on-the-ground” intake and screening teams at the Northwest State Correctional Facility in Swanton and the Chittenden Regional Correctional Facility in South Burlington. Regular presence inside the facilities will help identify individuals who would otherwise navigate removal proceedings alone.
“With VILDF’s timely support, we can move forward with confidence to hire the staff essential to addressing Vermont’s acute legal access gaps statewide,” Jill Martin Diaz, VAAP executive director, said. “We know that life-altering decisions to detain and deport people are happening too quickly and too often in error, not only devastating individuals and families, but also threatening constitutional rights and civil liberties for all. Access to counsel isn’t a luxury—it’s the bare minimum for a fair shot at justice.”
State Treasurer Mike Pieciak and Sen. Kesha Ram Hinsdale founded VILDF with a group of trusted colleagues in May 2025. VILDF seeks to raise $1,000,000 to strengthen immigration legal defense in Vermont.
The state has a small group of dedicated immigration legal service providers, including the Vermont Law and Graduate School, the Vermont Asylum Assistance Project, the Association of Africans Living in Vermont, and several independent pro bono attorneys. Addressing the growing unmet need for immigrant legal defense depends on the capacity of these entities to grow.
VAAP is a legal services and technical assistance provider that exists to raise Vermont non-citizens’ awareness of and access to critical immigration legal help and support. It achieves its mission through statewide direct service delivery, pro bono coordination, technical assistance, community education, and administrative and legislative advocacy. Serving as a bridge between immigrant service providers and regulators across the state and region, VAAP educates the public on immigration issues and advocates for policies and practices that advance immigrants’ rights, according to the announcement.
For more information, please see https://www.vermontlegaldefensefund.com and https://www.vaapvt.org.
This story was created by reporter Beth McDermott, bmcdermott1@gannett.com, with the assistance of Artificial Intelligence (AI). Journalists were involved in every step of the information gathering, review, editing and publishing process. Learn more at cm.usatoday.com/ethical-conduct.
This article originally appeared on Burlington Free Press: Vermont expands immigrant legal help—here’s what’s changing
The Burlington Free Press
Fri, August 15, 2025
The Vermont Immigration Legal Defense Fund has raised $250,000 since its launch in May, according to a community announcement.
The fund has already made its first grant of $100,000 to the Vermont Asylum Assistance Project, according to the announcement.
VILDF was established to bolster legal representation and support for immigrants in Vermont. With a record number of immigration detentions and removals taking place in Vermont and across the country, the need for legal representation has been overwhelming the small number of Vermont attorneys with expertise in immigration law.
The Vermont Asylum Assistance Project plans to use the funds from this award to expand urgently needed legal services for immigrants facing removal proceedings across the state.
Fri, August 15, 2025
The Vermont Immigration Legal Defense Fund has raised $250,000 since its launch in May, according to a community announcement.
The fund has already made its first grant of $100,000 to the Vermont Asylum Assistance Project, according to the announcement.
VILDF was established to bolster legal representation and support for immigrants in Vermont. With a record number of immigration detentions and removals taking place in Vermont and across the country, the need for legal representation has been overwhelming the small number of Vermont attorneys with expertise in immigration law.
The Vermont Asylum Assistance Project plans to use the funds from this award to expand urgently needed legal services for immigrants facing removal proceedings across the state.
Vermont Asylum Assistance Project executive director Jill Martin Diaz, an immigration lawyer, speaks during a Jan. 30 press conference about rising Immigration and Customs Enforcement activity in Vermont after Trump signed a slew of executive orders pushing for mass migrant deportations. Seen with U.S. Rep. Becca Balint (center) and former Lt. Gov. Molly Gray (left) of Vermont Afghan Alliance.
“Every Vermonter benefits when we protect our Constitutional freedoms, and the right to due process is not fully realized unless our neighbors have legal representation,” Mike Pieciak, state treasurer, said. “This first award is a galvanizing investment in VAAP’s ability to ensure our neighbors, friends, and community members truly enjoy America's promise of liberty and justice for all.”
“Vermont is leading the way in showing how we can come together to acknowledge human dignity and real public safety,” Kesha Ram Hinsdale, senator, said. “This award is an investment in the greatest needs our system faces to uphold the rights to which every person in our state is entitled.”
Three priorities for the Vermont Asylum Assistance Project
The infusion of funds allows VAAP to act immediately on three priority fronts.
VAAP plans to welcome its inaugural director of operations and legal assistant/paralegal who will lead efforts to streamline and strengthen the integration of pro bono and full-time volunteer attorneys into its legal services model, allowing its growing team of lawyers to focus more on legal work and client service. This strategic addition ensures coordinated support for volunteers working alongside paid staff on active VAAP cases.
VAAP is preparing to recruit three to five rural legal support workers, legal or paralegal advocates who will bring legal information, screenings, and services directly to community-based organizations spanning Vermont’s underserved geographies. Working in close partnership with trusted local institutions, these workers will act as bridges between the law and the community, ensuring culturally and linguistically responsive access to legal pathways. Rooted in lived experience and place-based relationships, this cohort will expand VAAP’s reach beyond traditional legal hubs—meeting immigrant communities where they are and reducing barriers to representation. By embedding legal capacity within rural CBOs, this initiative furthers VAAP's vision of a decentralized, community-anchored model for immigration justice across the state.
More: What the Winooski superintendent of schools said about his detention by ICE in Texas
VAAP will deploy “boots-on-the-ground” intake and screening teams at the Northwest State Correctional Facility in Swanton and the Chittenden Regional Correctional Facility in South Burlington. Regular presence inside the facilities will help identify individuals who would otherwise navigate removal proceedings alone.
“With VILDF’s timely support, we can move forward with confidence to hire the staff essential to addressing Vermont’s acute legal access gaps statewide,” Jill Martin Diaz, VAAP executive director, said. “We know that life-altering decisions to detain and deport people are happening too quickly and too often in error, not only devastating individuals and families, but also threatening constitutional rights and civil liberties for all. Access to counsel isn’t a luxury—it’s the bare minimum for a fair shot at justice.”
State Treasurer Mike Pieciak and Sen. Kesha Ram Hinsdale founded VILDF with a group of trusted colleagues in May 2025. VILDF seeks to raise $1,000,000 to strengthen immigration legal defense in Vermont.
The state has a small group of dedicated immigration legal service providers, including the Vermont Law and Graduate School, the Vermont Asylum Assistance Project, the Association of Africans Living in Vermont, and several independent pro bono attorneys. Addressing the growing unmet need for immigrant legal defense depends on the capacity of these entities to grow.
VAAP is a legal services and technical assistance provider that exists to raise Vermont non-citizens’ awareness of and access to critical immigration legal help and support. It achieves its mission through statewide direct service delivery, pro bono coordination, technical assistance, community education, and administrative and legislative advocacy. Serving as a bridge between immigrant service providers and regulators across the state and region, VAAP educates the public on immigration issues and advocates for policies and practices that advance immigrants’ rights, according to the announcement.
For more information, please see https://www.vermontlegaldefensefund.com and https://www.vaapvt.org.
This story was created by reporter Beth McDermott, bmcdermott1@gannett.com, with the assistance of Artificial Intelligence (AI). Journalists were involved in every step of the information gathering, review, editing and publishing process. Learn more at cm.usatoday.com/ethical-conduct.
This article originally appeared on Burlington Free Press: Vermont expands immigrant legal help—here’s what’s changing
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