Americans take pride in our country’s legacy of providing refuge to men, women, and children fleeing persecution and torture in their native countries. The National Immigrant Justice Center’s Jeanne and Joseph Sullivan Project for Protection of Asylum Seekers provides free legal representation to people fleeing persecution and torture in their...
Immigrants accused of even minor offenses are highly vulnerable to mandatory detention, deportation, and permanent exile. In 2010, the Supreme Court in Padilla v. Kentucky held that criminal defense lawyers must advise their clients about the potential immigration consequences of criminal pleas. Yet, criminal defense lawyers face many...
Immigrant women play vital roles in our communities and families. Many women arriving in the United States carry the heavy burden of trauma from structural inequities in their homelands and their difficult journeys seeking new homes. The U.S. immigration system presents further challenges that can prevent immigrant women from obtaining the...
The Detention, Democracy & Due Process (D3P) Project works to repair failures in the U.S. immigration system and uphold the due process protections of immigrants in the United States. Heartland Alliance’s National Immigrant Justice Center (NIJC) seeks to use law as an instrument for change, arguing landmark cases before the U.S. Courts of...
The Immigrant Children’s Protection Project represents and advocates for immigrant children who face the possibility of deportation to a dangerous homeland. Each year, tens of thousands of children arrive in the United States without a parent or guardian. They come to escape war, persecution, forced recruitment as child soldiers, abusive labor...
Harsh immigration laws prevent thousands of immigrants and their families from living securely, even when eligible for immigration status. Those who are able to apply for lawful status must contend with misinformation and with major backlogs in the immigration court system. Without the assurances of lawful status and work authorization, many...
The Counter-Trafficking Project provides comprehensive legal services and case management for children and adult survivors of human trafficking. The program has helped more than 130 survivors of trafficking become self-sufficient and move closer to fully integrating into our society. Law enforcement and social service agencies identify...
As lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) immigrants seek safety, security, and opportunity in the United States, our broken immigration system repeatedly denies them due process and basic dignity. LGBT immigrants often have suffered social and economic marginalization and experienced physical and psychological torment in their native...