How One Member Turned Her Industrious Office Into a U-Visa Clinic

Leslie Corbett, Executive Director of the Illinois Equal Justice Foundation, used her membership to create space for safety, healing, and justice.

In mid-June, members of Industrious at Millennium Park in Chicago shuffled out at their usual end of the workday around 5 p.m. But Leslie Corbett of the Illinois Equal Justice Foundation stayed.

She was helping coordinate and host a U-Visa Clinic at Industrious that evening with partner Chicago Volunteer Legal Services. 

A U-Visa Clinic like this one helps undocumented immigrants who’ve been victims of serious crimes like domestic violence, sexual assault, or trafficking, apply for a visa that lets them stay in the U.S. as long as they assist law enforcement in investigating or prosecuting the crime. With larger immigration stresses unfolding, these clinics offer a critical, if limited, pathway for certain vulnerable individuals.

The location filled up with approximately 40 applicants, 20 pro bono attorneys, and 12 interpreters. All of the victims who attended were egregiously defrauded by a notario and may qualify for a U-Visa. Within our walls, they had a chance to tell their stories, in a space where they felt seen, respected, safe, and cared for. Folks from the Illinois Equal Justice Foundation, along with their partners for this event, had a successful night from check-in to client meetings to document collection to check-out. 

“When you have meetings with your grant organization, you don’t usually get to see the work happening,” said Corbett. “It was pretty amazing to watch. All these people were coming in and it seemed like chaos, but then all of a sudden it was like poetry in motion.”

Corbett said there was plenty of space for people to wait, a kitchen with food catered for the event, and enough nooks and crannies that applicants had privacy when sharing their stories.

But the planning started much earlier than that. Corbett has been a member of this Industrious location since August 2023. Her work as executive director requires a space that balances the ability to meet new people with the flexibility to close the office door and get work done. The mission of the Illinois Equal Justice Foundation is to ensure equitable and easy access to our civil justice system. 

They help fund civil legal aid programs in Illinois to champion the rights of those burdened by barriers to justice. More specifically, they distribute State of Illinois funding to nonprofit organizations that provide free legal assistance, information, and online resources to people who can’t afford a lawyer. Since their first grant cycle in 2000, they’ve awarded more than $47 million in state grants to help struggling families, seniors, veterans, and people victimized by the criminalization of cannabis possession.

“If you can’t find a lawyer, you’re often just out of luck, and that’s where civil legal aid organizations come in and we fund nonprofit organizations across the state,” said Corbett. 

Before the event, she worked closely with our Member Experience Manager, who managed last-minute changes to the guest list and security, ensured food was handled, and did her part as a hostess.

The team, made up of five, including Corbett, works out of Industrious on a flexible schedule. But having a dedicated spot to gather has helped encourage their staff to meet in person, particularly her younger staff who are happy to have access to a gym in the historic Macy’s building. 

“It’s the best adult daycare ever,” said Corbett. 

Her ability to work comfortably out of Industrious day-to-day, paired with a successful clinic, has led her to already start planning and organizing another event using the rooftop bar and outdoor space that this Industrious location offers. She’s continuing to work with the Member Experience Manager to get to the right people and have everything in motion. 

“I really enjoy the space and I look forward to going to work because of it,” said Corbett.