Centro Legal de la Raza
Thursday, April 16, 2026
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Welcome!
Dear Partners in Justice,
On behalf of our Board of Directors, staff, and clients, thank you for standing with Centro Legal de la Raza and for joining us for our 57th Anniversary Celebration: Our Flame Grows Stronger.
For 57 years, Centro Legal has carried forward a flame first lit during the Chicano civil rights movement—a commitment to justice, dignity, and collective power rooted in community struggle and resilience. That flame has endured across generations, sustained by those who refused to accept injustice as inevitable. Today, in the face of unprecedented attacks on immigrant and working-class communities, that flame does not waver. It grows stronger.
We are proud to honor Keker, Van Nest & Peters as our 2026 Campeones de Justicia for their extraordinary pro bono leadership and their unwavering commitment to the rule of law. At a time when the independence of the legal profession has been tested, they have demonstrated clarity and courage—using advocacy, litigation, and their institutional voice to ensure that constitutional protections remain meaningful and enforceable.
We are equally honored to recognize the frontline responders and verifiers of the Alameda County Immigration Legal Education Partnership (ACILEP) as our 2026 Campeones de Comunidad. Together with partner organizations across the county, we formed a coordinated defense network—responding in real time when communities are under threat. They field urgent calls, verify enforcement activity, and stand alongside community members navigating immigration court proceedings and check-ins. Their work ensures that no one faces detention or deportation alone.
Tonight is an opportunity to reflect on what that collective strength makes possible. That work has never been carried out alone. It is made possible by the partnerships, coalitions, and networks that expand what any one organization can do. This is comunidad in action. This is how our flame grows stronger.
Democracy and the rule of law do not sustain themselves. They depend on coordinated advocacy, institutional integrity, and the collective willingness to act—to ensure that rights are not merely articulated, but enforced.
As we gather tonight, we invite you to reflect, to connect, and to recommit to this shared responsibility. The support raised this evening will allow Centro Legal to continue defending immigrant rights, protecting tenants, advancing dignity and fairness for workers across our communities, and building the next generation of civic and legal leaders.
Thank you for being here, for your partnership, and for your continued commitment to ensuring that this flame, rooted in justice and carried by community, continues to grow stronger.
In gratitude,
Monique Berlanga Executive Director
57th Anniversary: Our Flame Grows Stronger
Evening Program & Celebration
6:00 pm
Welcome Reception
Mariachi Serenatas Directo
Appetizers prepared and served by Blue Heron Catering
Auction Ticket Sales
7:00 pm
Dinner & Program
Welcome by Monique Berlanga & Luis Hoyos
Spoken Word by Gabriela Segura Macias
Reflections by Monique Berlanga
Numan Wafaie, Client
FUND-A-NEED
AWARDS PRESENTATION
Campeones de Justicia
Keker Van Nest & Peters LLP
Campeones de Comunidad
ACILEP
Concluding Remarks & �BAILAMOS! con DJ Maryela Perez
10:00 pm
�Gracías!
Thank You to Our Sponsors
Ember of Justice
Rising Flame
Ignite Change
Flame of Solidarity
Chip Conradi
Mike Baller & Christine Brigagliano
Claudia Perkins and Bruce Johnson
Campeones de Comunidad
Honoring ACILEP’s Rapid Responders, Verifiers, and Community Network
First launched in 2017, ACILEP has been a trusted, community-rooted network dedicated to protecting and supporting immigrant families across Alameda County. When the network went dormant, it left a critical gap at the worst possible time. In the face of renewed enforcement threats, five partner organizations, Centro Legal de la Raza, Eden United Church of Christ, Faith in Action - East Bay, Spanish Speaking Citizens Foundation, and Street Level Health Project, came together and took a leap of faith, relaunching this work without guaranteed resources because our community could not afford to wait.
Together, we rebuilt. Since February 2025, ACILEP has answered thousands of hotline calls, provided emergency legal services to over 100 residents detained by ICE, connected hundreds of community members to legal consultations and representation, trained thousands of volunteers, and reached more than 10,000 community members through know-your-rights education and outreach.
But ACILEP is more than a program. It is a collective effort powered by people across the county. It is the dispatchers answering calls seven days a week, the verifiers ensuring accurate information reaches our communities, the volunteers accompanying neighbors to check-ins and court; the lawyers visiting with recently arrested individuals at ICE detention centers and submitting emergency filings to obtain the release of those unlawfully detained; to educators empowering families with the knowledge and tools to assert and protect their rights. It is also the leaders who stepped up at critical moments, the funders who believed in this work, and every person in this room who has stood with us.
At its core, ACILEP is a countywide community, choosing, every single day, to show up for one another.
Tonight, we honor ACILEP’s frontline rapid responders and verifiers as our Campeones de Comunidad, but this recognition belongs to everyone who has contributed to this effort. It is all of you, together, who keep our community safe.
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THE LAW OFFICES OF ANDREW WOLFF, P.C.
Is proud to sponsor Centro Legal de la Raza's 57th Anniversary Gala and congratulates tonight's honorees
Thank you for your dedication to the youth in our community!
Centro Legal de la Raza’s Gala Fundraiser • Celebrating 57 Years!
Campeones de Justicia Keker, Van Nest & Peters
For years, Keker, Van Nest & Peters has been an indispensable pro bono partner to Centro Legal de la Raza, bringing extraordinary legal skill and a deep commitment to justice to some of the most urgent challenges facing our immigrant communities.
At a time when many in the legal profession chose silence or retreat, KVP stood firm. The firm was among the first to publicly condemn efforts to intimidate attorneys representing vulnerable communities, making clear that the rule of law must never yield to fear or political pressure. Through both word and action, they have demonstrated what true legal leadership looks like.
That leadership has been felt most powerfully in moments of crisis. When ICE began arresting asylum seekers at their required court appearances, advocates faced a system with no clear remedy. Keker stepped forward without hesitation. Their attorneys took on complex federal habeas cases, secured rapid releases for detained community members, and partnered with Centro Legal and the ACLU of Northern California to lead groundbreaking litigation challenging these unlawful arrests.
As our co-counsel in Garro Pinchi v. Noem, Keker helped secure a sweeping court order halting these arrests across much of our region, protecting thousands of individuals seeking safety through the legal process. This victory, and many others, were made possible by their willingness to invest extraordinary time, talent, and resources in defense of those most at risk.
But their impact goes beyond any single case. Keker’s partnership has strengthened an entire ecosystem of response, connecting frontline community efforts with high-impact litigation and ensuring that when our communities are under threat, they are not standing alone.
Tonight, we are proud to present the Campeones de Justicia award to Keker, Van Nest & Peters. We honor not only their remarkable advocacy, but their unwavering commitment to the rule of law, to pro bono service, and to the principle that justice must be protected, especially when it is under the gravest threat.
Spoken Word
Gabriela Segura Macias, Centro Legal de la Raza Youth Law Academy
Gabriela Segura Macias, is a senior at Lionel Wilson High School and plans to attend UC Berkeley in the fall. She will be the first in her family to attend college and her origins are from Michoacan, Mexico.
As the daughter of immigrant parents, her leadership has been instrumental in helping her family navigate institutional barriers since a young age, as well as balancing her activism as a leader at her school and community.
Her interest in law began at the age of eight when she had the task of helping her parents find a good immigration lawyer. For ten years, she accompanied her parents at every legal consultation and just a few months ago, her parents received their permits. It was this experience that motivated her to become a part of Youth Law Academy (“YLA”) and has taken it upon herself to take advantage of every learning opportunity in our program. She has risen as an exemplary leader through our YLA leadership circle and helped to co-plan and facilitate various youth events at YLA.
Mission Statement
Founded in 1969, Centro Legal de la Raza is a legal services agency protecting and advancing the rights of low-income, immigrant, Black, and Latinx communities through bilingual legal representation, education, and advocacy. By combining quality legal services with know-your-rights education and youth development, Centro Legal de la Raza ensures access to justice for thousands of individuals throughout Northern and Central California.
Centro Legal de la Raza
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Claudia Perkins
Retired VP-Human Resources, Clif Bar
Diane Downs
Chief Legal Talent Officer, Morrison & Foerster LLP
Ellie Dehghan
VP, Legal & Operations & Board Secretary, The END Fund
Luis Hoyos
Senior Commercial Litigation Counsel, NVIDIA
Frank Martin
Partner and General Counsel, Cole-Frieman & Mallon LLP
Jay SchwartzCoffey
Chief Financial Officer, Water.org
Keval Patel
General Counsel, Zipline
Sandra Sertel
Former Sales Leader, LinkedIn
Stephanie Tang
Head of Corporate & Employment Legal, Benchling
Monique Berlanga, Executive Director
Silvia Jacques, Deputy Director
Abigail Sullivan Engen, Immigrants’ Rights Co-Directing Attorney
Angel Ibarra-Nunez, ACILEP Co-Director
Lourdes Martinez, ACILEP Co-Director
Evelina Nava, Interim Tenants’ Rights Co-Directing Attorney
Jesse Newmark, Affirmative Litigation Attorney
Brenda Orellana Ramos, Grants Director
Mara “Rama” Chavez-Diaz, YLA Director
