About 30 million people in the U.S. need and qualify for free legal services each year, and many legal aid providers work diligently to meet the need. However, because of a systematic lack of resources, legal aid providers have to turn away about half of those who would otherwise qualify for services coming to them for legal assistance nationally.
Despite a persistent myth that LGBTQ people are wealthy, the fact is that LGBTQ people face poverty at the same or greater rates than their straight, cisgender counterparts. Transgender and bisexual people in particular are disproportionately affected by poverty. NCLR works to remove barriers to LGBTQ people in accessing vital legal aid, and provides training and technical assistance to legal aid organizations to provide culturally-competent legal services to low-income LGBTQ clients.
Read about the National LGBTQ Legal Aid Forum, a listserv dedicated to improving legal services for low-income LGBT clients.