Wanda Sanchez Day, the general and senior policy counsel for Organizacion Latino-Americana (OLA) of Eastern Long Island, will be honored at the New York City Bar Association's International Law Conference on the Status of Women on March 8.
The United Nations Committee of the New York City Bar selected Ms. Sanchez Day in recognition of her "work to pursue justice for crimes committed against women and girls and to advance the human rights of women and girls in the world," according to a release.
A civil rights attorney for over two decades, she began working with OLA, which has an office on Newtown Lane, last April. Among the highlights on her impressive resume, she has served as chief legal officer and national legal director for United Sikhs, a nonprofit focusing on international humanitarian aid and human rights advocacy. She has represented families and individuals facing eviction as a housing staff attorney with the Legal Aid Society of New York, and since 2022 has been co-chairwoman of the Puerto Rico Task Force, a civil rights advocacy group. A former board member of the Puerto Rican Bar Association, she now serves on the board of the Latino Judges Association Foundation.
"Her deep knowledge of human and civil rights is exceeded only by her passion for justice," OLA's executive director, Minerva Perez, said in the release. "For us at OLA and for our local community, this means working to ensure that local governments do not get away with enacting policies that strip away the rights of immigrants."