Emerging Leaders Class of 2021

Madi McEwen currently works as a Community Organizer with Justice for Migrant Families and as a Program Assistant in the Grants Department at Journey's End Refugee Services. She first started working with immigrant populations during her time at the University at Buffalo where she taught ESOL to new refugee arrivals. Madi values the diversity that immigrant populations bring to Buffalo and her community organizing efforts grew out of her desire to stand in solidarity with our immigrant neighbors. After college, Madi co-coordinated the Justice for Migrant Families' Visitation Program to the Buffalo Federal Detention Facility in Batavia, NY. In this role, she worked alongside people in immigration detention as they navigated their legal cases, made connections with community members, and shared the difficult realities of living in detention. She is passionate about educating her community about the links between over-policing, mass incarceration and the punitive immigration detention system. Madi joined the Emerging Leaders Program to develop her skills in relationship building and campaign strategy to ultimately work with her community towards a future that liberates us all.