Legal Aid hosts clients for On the Table discussion

Eight Akron residents gathered around the board room table at Community Legal Aid, discussing priority issues facing Akron’s low-income residents.

On the docket were education, housing, food insecurity, race relations, living wages and mental health needs.

The conversation was part of the city-wide On the Table event. Sponsored by the Akron Community Foundation, On the Table aimed at facilitating discussions across the city about critical topics.

“On the Table is all about giving people a voice,” explained Steven McGarrity, Executive Director of Legal Aid. “That’s crucial to us.”

“Our clients – the seniors, veterans, domestic violence victims, the disabled, low-income families – they typically don’t have a voice in the justice system without an attorney,” McGarrity continued. “Our job as a non-profit law firm is to give them a voice. This is an opportunity for us to sit down and hear how we can better do that.”

As an On the Table host, Legal Aid provided dinner for attendees, who were previous clients or members of low-income neighborhoods across the city.