Immigrant and refugee advocacy day 2025

Join our movement for immigrant justice in Olympia on Thursday, January 30, 2025.

Every year, hundreds of WAISN members come together from across Washington State for Immigrant and Refugee Advocacy Day (IRAD)—a day to celebrate the power and resilience of and stand in solidarity with immigrant and refugee communities.

During IRAD, we will build our collective consciousness about our primary campaigns, march, rally, and engage directly with legislators to advocate for the policies that matter most to our communities.

Registration Information

Registration for our full-day program is now closed but we invite you to march with us to the Capitol and join our rally on the Legislative Building North Steps at 2:00 PM.

Our rally will feature a range of speakers, including one of our legislative champions Senator Rebecca Saldaña as well as community leader Michael Byun, Executive Director of Asian Counseling and Referral Services.

If you did not register for our full-day IRAD program but would like to join us for the march and rally, please fill out THIS FORM to receive information about the march meeting location and to let us know whether you will need language access support.

What We Are Advocating For

During the 2025 legislative session, our primary policy priorities are:

Health Equity for Immigrants

An individual’s right to healthcare access should not depend on their immigration status, the Legislature’s budget, or political priorities each year. People should be able to access the care they need when needed. The Health Equity for Immigrants bill ensures that immigrants and refugees can access the healthcare that they need, regardless of immigration status and income by fully funding the Apple Health Expansion Program and continued funding for Cascade Care subsidies.

Wage Replacement Program for Excluded Undocumented Workers

With the threat of mass deportations and workplace raids with the new federal administration, it is a pivotal juncture for the Washington State legislature to demonstrate their support and protection of our state’s most vulnerable workers. Ensuring undocumented workers have a safety net with a Wage Replacement Program if they experience job loss will ensure they can keep themselves, their families, and their communities afloat.

We will also continue to push for priorities on our secondary policy platform:

Ending Collaboration Between ICE and the Department of Corrections: Stopping the transfer of immigrants from state prisons to immigration detention centers.
Rent Stabilization (HB 1217/SB 5222): Providing stability and protection for manufactured homeowners and residential tenants by capping rent increases and fees.
Domestic Workers Bill of Rights (SB 5023): Ensuring fair labor protections for domestic workers statewide.
No Violence, No Segregation (HB 1137): Enact the first-ever limitation on the use of solitary confinement in Washington State.
Traffic Safety for All: Deprioritizing traffic stops for non-safety reasons and supporting low-income drivers.
State Legal Defense Fund: Securing state funding to support immigrants navigating the legal system.
Support for Newly Arrived Migrants: Increasing resources for newcomers seeking asylum and other protections in Washington.

In addition to these campaigns, we are also supporting 31 campaigns on our tertiary platform.

Caring for Our Rainbow Coalition

In alignment with WAISN’s commitment to care and community, we will be providing dedicated spaces to ensure all participants feel comfortable and supported throughout the day. Additionally, knowing that our communities are unfairly targeted, we are working to keeping safety and security top of mind. If you need more information or specific accommodations, please let us know.