An Open Letter to the Community

An open letter to Building One Community constituents:

Because we believe that you care about Building One Community and those we serve, we
want to make you aware of a troubling matter that has come up.

As you know, our mission is to help immigrants – all immigrants -- and their families succeed
in the community. We require that all of our staff and volunteers be committed to that
mission.

Many of our programs are designed specifically to support day laborers, including providing
a place of shelter seven days a week, hosting social events, helping day laborers recover
unpaid wages, and offering customized Skills Development workshops. Preventing and
remediating day laborer mistreatment is a cause that is a key tenet of our mission.

An article ran in this morning’s Stamford Advocate citing allegations made by a former B1C
employee who had contacted the press and claimed that we treated day laborers
unfairly. This is patently untrue. Last night, the reporter met with nine day laborers at B1C
who shared their positive experiences at the Center and refuted claims mentioned in the
article. If you would like to read the full article, a link is available in the “Press” section of our
website. Letters of support from the community are also included in this area.

The article references the former employee’s complaint registered with the Commission on
Human Rights and Opportunities. We have yet to receive communication from the CHRO
and are eager to work with them so that they can investigate the claim. We are confident
that their investigation will determine that these allegations are unfounded.

We have always treated everyone who comes to B1C, including all day laborers, fairly and
with respect, and we remain committed to delivering compassionate service to make all
immigrants feel welcome.

Please do not hesitate to contact either of us if you have any questions or concerns.

 

Sincerely,

 

                     

Catalina S. Horak                                              Anne Downey
Executive Director                                           Board Chair
chorak@building1community.org              annekdowney@gmail.com