A Message from the 2023 DHBA President, Carla Green

DHBA Familia,

We are officially off to a new year and I am truly honored to be serving as President of the DHBA in 2023!

I want to start by saying that I know I have some big shoes to fill following Elsa Manzanares, our 2022 fearless, hard-working President. Elsa’s dedication to the DHBA has been an inspiration and I hope to carry on and grow the already wonderful momentum, initiatives, and support Elsa was able to garner for the DHBA this past year. I am thankful Elsa will continue to serve on our Board as Immediate-Past President and we look forward to working with her. I also want to acknowledge and give many thanks to some of our outgoing Board members that have given their service and (for some) several years of their time—many thanks to Jake Torres, Tyrone Valdivia, Fabiola Segovia, and Javier Perez. I want our members to know that the DHBA would not be the organization that it is without you. Without your support, your time, and yes, even your donations—the DHBA would not be able to accomplish the wonderful work that it does. We are grateful for each of you and encourage you to participate, become involved, and socialize with your familia. The DHBA is only growing, getting stronger—we’re excited that we’ve seen substantial increases in our membership numbers, we’ve raised record-setting donations for our incredible initiatives, including for the DHBA’s pipeline initiative, the Dallas Latina Leadership Program, and our Judicial Externship Program.

Throughout my years of service on the DHBA Board, I’ve had the honor of meeting and having long discussions with our DHBA members. In those discussions, I often hear about how the DHBA has impacted our members, many times in different ways. For some, the DHBA has been an organization that has introduced them to other attorneys with similar backgrounds that have resulted in long-lasting, inspiring friendships/mentorships. For others, the DHBA is an organization that has rallied behind causes and initiatives that inspired our members to participate and become more involved in our Dallas-Hispanic community.

For me, the DHBA has always felt like home, like family. My first introduction to the DHBA was in law school when I attended Texas A&M University of Law. I was a single mother, juggling raising an 8-year-old son, trying to get through my law school courses, and keeping up a comfortable household for the both of us. Scholarships were game-changers. The DHBA awarded me one of my first scholarships in law school—and to this day—I remember how excited I was to receive those funds. It was a relief. I needed and the DHBA responded. That’s familia. After graduating and moving to Dallas, the DHBA became an organization of support and comfort. I’ve met so many life-long friends/colleagues through this organization that I consider familia.

It is truly inspirational to hear (and experience) how the DHBA has impacted our members’ law practice and lives. We want to continue to do so. So, join us! Come celebrate with us! We are excited about this upcoming year and look forward to working with our members to reach our goals and continue our mission.

Carla Green 

2023 DHBA President

Report From Karnes Pro Bono Project

Wednesday, December 12, 2018 4:09 PM | Matthew Phillips

This fall, the DHBA recruited volunteers to provide free legal services for immigrants detained in the Karnes immigration detention center near San Antonio. The following is a firsthand report from immigration attorney Amy Hsu on her experience volunteering last week.

At the beginning of December I spent a week volunteering at the Karnes County Residential Center through RAICES, where ICE is holding hundreds of fathers and their minor sons fleeing from Central America. Our volunteer group included myself, Gerardo Villegas (another attorney from Dallas), two attorneys from New York, a paralegal from Colorado, a social worker from New York, and a child therapist from Boston.

We spoke to the fathers, and sometimes the sons, to prepare them for their credible fear interviews, the first hurdle in the process to apply for asylum. Most of them had never been in contact in with an attorney before and only had a very limited understanding of the asylum process. They would have been completely unprepared for their interviews if we hadn't been there. Sometimes we would help RAICES with intake interviews as well. The day started around 9 am and didn't end until visitor hours ended at 8 pm. It was a very intense but very rewarding experience. Everyone that I spoke with was very grateful for the advice and assistance.

At the end of the week all the volunteers agreed that we would do it all again. One of the other volunteers is already looking to volunteer again. The RAICES staff is incredibly dedicated to providing access to legal services for as many people as possible, and it was a privilege to work with them. DHBA was kind enough to provide a stipend to cover travel and lodging expenses.


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