A few years ago in Brockton, a young woman named Norah was sexually harassed at her job. She spoke up in her own defense and was fired. She felt lost, receiving no validation from her employer on what had happened to her. She sought support from a local workers’ rights organization and found much more than just legal support – she found an entire new community.
Years before this moment, Isabel Lopez had been working as a community organizer in Brockton and had come to realize that immigrant communities and workers needed an organization to defend them. With the help of some fellow community leaders, she founded Brockton Workers Alliance (BWA) in 2017 – an organization led by immigrant workers, for immigrant workers. BWA’s mission is “to educate, support, organize, and empower immigrant workers that confront long-term workplace abuses and exploitation to lead the fight for their rights through the development of better local, state, and national policies.”
Isabel shared that Norah “felt as if her rights were violated.” With the help of Brockton Worker’s Alliance, Norah sought justice and brought her abuser to court. In that experience, she also found confidence in herself and comfort in the validation she received from fellow organizers and workers. She stayed involved; “now Norah does our community outreach and education because she believes that like her, there’s many other women at work that are suffering. any type of violence, but they are afraid to speak up.”
In 2017, with the help of a fiscal sponsor, some early community supporters, and Stone Hill College who lent their space, Brockton Workers Alliance started hosting Know Your Rights sessions for anyone interested. These sessions not only provided critical information to keep community members safe and informed, but they also opened a space for workers to come share their experiences, find community, and ask for support in issues they are facing in their own lives and workplaces. “We try here to meet the needs of everyone that comes and then engage them to be part of the work moving forward. So through the Know Your Rights, we ask them, what brought you here today,” Isabel explained, “As an immigrant worker led organization, everyone that comes through the door is welcome. We invite them to learn about the different campaigns and get involved.”
As their place in the community grew, the organization continued to grow behind-the-scenes until eventually receiving their 501c3 status in 2019. Over the years, the group has campaigned for a variety of bills which support immigrant and workers’ rights including workplace injury protection, wage theft, affordable housing, childcare and paid family leave, and accessible transportation. BWA welcomes all community members to build their leadership skills, train them to become organizers, and involve them with the issues they are most passionate about. Their whole board and advisory committees are made up of community leaders who rose through the ranks of their organization.
Isabel conveyed the story of one of their current board members. He came to the organization as an undocumented immigrant living in Brockton looking for support. He had been very involved in his community back home and was looking for a place to find community and continue his advocacy work. When first getting involved with BWA he told Isabel that ‘Brockton Worker’s Alliance is the heart of the community.’ While he is actively working through his documentation issues and his language barriers, he is now is one of their most active organizers, helping lead their transportation committee and sharing his knowledge with other community members.
An LZF grantee partner since 2022, this year marks Brockton Worker’s Alliance fifth and final year as a Lenny Zakim Fund grantee partner. “Lenny Zakim Fund was one of the first foundations that gave us funding and support,” Isabel related. With LZF’s support, they have been able to further develop their presence in Brockton and expand their programming. This year, they have begun working to train the next generation of organizers as they pilot a new summer youth program. Through the summer of 2026, BWA has been working with ten youth to educate them about community organizing, develop their leadership and financial literacy skills, and involve them in the advocacy work happening across Brockton, particularly surrounding economic justice.
As they approach their tenth year in operation, the BWA team is working hard to take care of their community and fight back against growing threats to immigrant communities. “We are the targets of this government that we have. The systems and the structures that were created to affect us are not going to persist because we are here standing together stronger in collective building resilience,” Isabel proclaimed. The organization is always in collaboration with other community organizations, and with the people of Brockton. “We are fighting with one hand and with the other one, we are building… We know that we are resilient and we are strung together and our work and our voices and our communities are part of this fabric of the United States.”
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Learn more about Brockton Worker’s Alliance on their website here. BWA is always looking for new volunteers to support their events, canvassing, and campaign work.