September 20, 2001
Together with the rest of Maine, we were shocked and saddened by the
September 11 acts of terrorism directed at the World Trade Centers and
Pentagon. In the aftermath of those attacks, we have become deeply concerned
by local news reports of harassment and discrimination directed at individuals
and ethnic groups, including immigrants and refugees, who are perceived
to share some racial or ethnic characteristics with the alleged terrorists.
These local individuals and families are also innocent victims of the
September 11 tragedy, fully deserving of our country's promise of "justice
for all."
Pine Tree Legal Assistance provides free legal services to clients in
a wide range of civil legal problems, including harassment and discrimination
cases. Harassment cases can involve incidents of personal harassment by
people in the general community or by other tenants at a client's building
or by co-workers at a client's job. Discrimination on the job can include
acts by an employer or co-worker. Housing discrimination can include acts
by a landlord, another tenant, a bank, or real estate agent regarding
an apartment or home. Discrimination cases can also include acts by a
business owner or another customer.
In order to assist victims with protection during the current crisis,
Pine Tree will be giving our highest priority to their requests for assistance.
We have set up a special line for individuals who have these types of
problems to contact us, at 774-8211 ext 201. We will be coordinating services
with the Maine
Attorney General's Office, which has also made these cases a very
high priority.
Using our bilingual voicemail system, clients who do not speak English
can call us at 774-8211 at the following extensions:
Social service staff should contact Portland Directing Attorney Frank D'Alessandro
of the Portland office of Pine Tree Legal Assistance at 774-8211, extension
203 to describe a problem or issue that appears to result from ethnic bias
or hatred directed at members of our local community.
