John Jairo Lugo is the Co-founder and Community Organizing Director of Unidad Latina en Acción (ULA) in New Haven. His work for prisoners’ and immigrants’ rights is informed by his own experience being detained by the Colombian government and US immigration authorities until eventually granted asylum in the US. Before dedicating himself full-time to ULA, John Jairo worked for 15 years at Community Mediation, Inc., directing a program in New Haven Superior Court diverting first-time offenders from prison. He is a recipient of the Center for Community Change’s “Emerging Change Champion Award.”