FEBRUARY 2015 NAME CHANGE MOBILIZATION!!!

Dear Allies and Supporters of the Transformative Justice Law Project of Illinois (TJLP), FEBRUARY NAME CHANGE MOBILIZATION!!! FEBRUARY 27TH from 9am-3pm The Daley Center, 50 W. Washington, room 1202 (12th Floor) *PLEASE READ IMPORTANT INFORMATION ABOUT FEE WAIVERS BELOW* During the Name Change Mobilization event, attorneys and trained volunteers will help transgender and gender non-conforming folks file petitions to change their names legally at the Daley Center in downtown Chicago. Volunteers will then provide follow-up support services to accompany folks to their court dates and help them navigate the subsequent name change processes at the Department of Motor Vehicles, Social Security Office, Department of Vital Records, etc. Our goal is simple: we want to help as many people as possible legally change their names as part of our long-term goal of gender self-determination for all, free of government limitation. IMPORTANT FEE WAIVER INFORMATION: You are likely eligible if you fall below 125% of the Federal Poverty Line (you earn less than $14,713 in annual income for a single person household) or if you receive some sort of need based government benefit (SSI, SNAP, SSDI, TANF, etc). If you or someone you know needs a fee waiver please bring documents proving your income status such as Tax returns, SSI letter, FAFSA financial aid award, link card, Public Aid documents, etc. If you do not have any documentation of your financial status we can discuss alternative methods of proving income. To obtain a fee waiver, petitioners must go in front of a judge to submit a request. An attorney from TJLP will help folks navigate this process. As of 2014, the court hears waiver applications from 2pm-4pm. There is a possibility that fee waivers may be heard between 9am-12pm. However, this is not a guarantee. If you are applying for a fee waiver, you may come in the morning and we will let you know when you arrive if fee waiver applications will be heard by the court. Otherwise, you should try to arrive by 12:30pm at the earliest to avoid the possibility of waiting until 2pm. We will continue to provide updates regarding the fee waiver schedule. Do not fear! If you cannot attend this month's Mobilization, this is an ongoing project of TJLP and will reoccur in the coming months. We send many thanks to those with the financial means to donate to TJLP and help make this event possible! If you have questions regarding the Name Change Mobilization or know of anyone that would like to participate by either getting their name legally changed or by volunteering to help folks change their names legally, please contact us at namechange@tjlp.org or 773-272-1822(phone/text). Get excited for this Mobilization!!! We sure are! Fight to win! In Solidarity, Name Change Mobilization Crew