Border Advocacy Groups
On this page, you will find a list of organizations actively working for just and humane border practices in the United States and Mexico. Many of them have volunteer programs while others provide advocacy tools and ways to get involved. If you know of other groups that should be on this list, please send your suggestion to: nnirr@nnirr.org
South Texas Human Rights Center A community-based center, this humanitarian organization seeks to end death and suffering on the Texas-Mexico border. It engages in different community initiatives to attain this goal.
No More Deaths/No Más Muerte A humanitarian organization based in southern Arizona, it works to end death and suffering in U.S.-Mexico borderlands. It encourages a humane immigrant policy and seeks for volunteers for its programs and services. Its website also provides up-to-date information about migrant deaths in the border; note that this is currently not available as the website is offline.
Humane Borders/Fronteras Compasivas Offers humanitarian assistance through the deployment of water stations on routes commonly used by migrants, with the sole goal of preventing deaths. It also develops informational resources about migrant deaths, and accepts volunteers.
Colibrí Center for Human Rights Holds a comprehensive database of missing persons last seen crossing the U.S.-Mexico border, using the information to match families with unidentified remains and advocate for the continuing human rights crisis on the border.
TEXAS
Las Americas Immigrant Advocacy Center
The mission of Las Americas Immigrant Advocacy Center is to provide high-quality legal services to low-income immigrants, and to advocate for human rights.Las Americas is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization based in El Paso, Texas providing free and low-cost legal services to immigrants and refugees in West Texas and New Mexico. We have served over 30,000 people from over 80 countries since 1987.Las Americas provides legal representation through both attorneys and accredited representatives through the Department of Justice.
The Refugee and Immigrant Center for Education and Legal Services (RAICES) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that promotes justice by providing free and low-cost legal services to underserved immigrant children, families and refugees in Central and South Texas. RAICES is the largest immigration non-profit in Texas with offices in Austin, Corpus, Dallas, Fort Worth, Houston, and San Antonio.
The Texas Civil Rights Project uses legal advocacy to empower Texas communities and create policy change. With dozens of high-caliber attorneys and professionals in Austin, Dallas, Houston, San Antonio, and the Rio Grande Valley, and an extensive network of pro bono counsel and community allies —TCRP is among the most influential civil rights organizations in the Lone Star State.
ARIZONA
The Florence Immigrant and Refugee Rights Project
The Florence Project is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit legal service organization providing free legal services to men, women, and unaccompanied children in immigration custody in Arizona.
University of Arizona, Immigration Law Clinic
Working in collaboration with non-profit law offices and pro bono attorneys in Arizona, their aim is o help ensure that low income individuals with meritorious defenses to deportation or claims to immigration benefits are able to obtain accurate, nuanced advice about their cases and, whenever possible, direct representation.
NEW MEXICO
Las Americas Immigrant Advocacy Center
The mission of Las Americas Immigrant Advocacy Center is to provide high-quality legal services to low-income immigrants, and to advocate for human rights.Las Americas is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization based in El Paso, Texas providing free and low-cost legal services to immigrants and refugees in West Texas and New Mexico. We have served over 30,000 people from over 80 countries since 1987.
Las Americas provides legal representation through both attorneys and accredited representatives through the Department of Justice.
New Mexico Immigrant Law Center
Based in New Mexico, their mission is to advance justice and equity by empowering low-income immigrant communities through collaborative legal services, advocacy and education.
CALIFORNIA
* CA has a long list of organizations providing services to migrants and refugees – the following are the key groups closest to the border:
Alliance San Diego is a community empowerment organization doing local work of national significance in the fields of civic engagement, human rights, educational equity, and tax and fiscal policy. Every day we are identifying policy solutions, building coalitions, preparing leaders, and mobilizing people for change. Alliance San Diego also serves the immigrant community by providing resources and information to help them integrate into society.
The ACLU of San Diego & Imperial Counties fights for individual rights and fundamental freedoms for all through education, litigation, & policy advocacy.
AFSC – American Friends Service Committee – San Diego US Mexico Border Program
Quaker social justice organization doing human rights monitoring of migrant caravans and supporting shelters in Mexico.
San Diego Immigrant Rights Consortium (SDIRC)
The San Diego Immigrant Rights Consortium is a project of the Alliance San Diego to:
- Support comprehensive immigration reform
- Stop the spread of local policies and practices that target and violate the civil and human rights of immigrants.
- educate immigrants about their rights and the legal and other resources available to them
- Educate the public about the important contributions of immigrants and counter the myths and misstatements made about immigrants.
SDIRC runs a Borderlands Get Free Bond Fund to provide bonds for people in immigration detention in San Diego and Imperial Counties.
San Diego Rapid Response Network
The San Diego Rapid Response Network (SDRRN) is a coalition of human rights and service organizations, attorneys, and community leaders dedicated to aiding immigrants and their families in the San Diego border region. The Network is a human rights and service organizations aiding immigrants and their families in the San Diego border region with shelter and other needs.
Faith-based organization providing temporary shelter and resources to immigrant families in San Diego.
MEXICO
La Casa del Migrante (Tijuana, Mexico)
Los Misioneros de San Carlos Scalabrinianos hemos empezado en 1985 el ministerio de la acogida y de la hospitalidad hacia todo tipo de migrante, deportado y refugiados abriendo la primera Casa del Migrante en Tijuana, B.C. siguió Ciudad Juárez, Chih., luego Tecún Umán en Guatemala, Tapachula, Chis., Ciudad de Guatemala y Agua Prieta, Son.Las Casas del Migrante son un centro de acogida, donde se proporciona alojamiento, comida, apoyo espiritual, orientación, primera atención médica y defensa y promoción de los derechos humanos.
Centro de los Derechos del Migrante (Mexico City, Mexico)
Binational organization based in Mexico City that educates, empowers, and advocates for immigrants, while also providing transnational legal representation and advice. CDM focuses on the rights of Mexico-based migrant workers who must constantly move between their homes and the United States.
Institute for Women in Migration (IMUMI) Legal Advocates Volunteer Program based in Mexico City. Link to the volunteer page here.
IMUMI welcomes immigration attorneys, law students with supervisors, paralegals, and BIA accredited representatives with Spanish fluency to come volunteer for short periods in Mexico City and surrounding regions. Volunteers can work with two types of organizations: migrant shelters and deportee community centers. In migrant shelters, volunteers offer legal orientation to people in transit through Mexico. This includes an overview of asylum and withholding in the US, current US immigration policies, and Special Immigrant Juvenile Status, as well as one-on-one legal orientation. Working with the deported/returned community, volunteers offer legal workshops and legal orientation. The program currently organizes workshops for returned and deported people in collaboration with Otros Dreams en Acción.
La Casa del Migrante del Saltillo (Coahuila, Mexico)
“La Casa del Migrante de Saltillo [Frontera con Justicia AC] es una organización de la sociedad civil sin fines de lucro ni filiación partidista que se dedica a la promoción y defensa de los derechos humanos de personas migrantes y solicitantes de la condición de refugio en Coahuila.”
American Friends Service Committee US-Mexico Program (San Diego, CA)
AFSC San Diego supports immigrant-led organizations by developing “human rights committees” and working to include immigrant voices in policy debates. It is also in charge of the AFSC San Diego U.S.-Mexico Border Program which seeks to protect the human rights and self-determination of migrants and border communities.
Angry Tías y Abuelas of the Rio Grande Valley, TX or Angry Tías Facebook (Rio Grande Valley, TX)
The Angry Tias and Abuelas mission is to advocate for dignity and justice for individuals and families seeking asylum at our borders. As they embark on their journeys to destinations across the U.S., our aim is to assure their basic health and safety needs are met.
We provide emergency assistance such as food, water, clothing, toiletries, logistical support and cash funds when needed to those recently released from ICE custody at bus depots or shelters in Brownsville and McAllen. We inform asylum seekers of their rights as they await entry across international bridges and give direct financial support to refugee shelters in the RGV and select immigrant shelters in Matamoros and Reynosa.
Border Network for Human Rights (El Paso, TX)
BNHR is an immigration reform and human rights advocacy group. It is a grassroots organizer with a large membership and capabilities, currently focusing on the nation-wide push for a just immigration reform. The organization also releases useful reports, including annual documentations of abuses in the border.
Coalición de Derechos Humanos (Tucson, AZ)
Grassroots organization that promotes human and civil rights of immigrants, fighting border militarization and migrant abuses. Derechos Humanos acts to influence public policy and opinion on immigration. Its bilingual website has useful resources for immigrants and advocates, such as ‘Know Your Rights’ cards, an abuse report hotline, and updated information on Arizona migrant deaths.
Haitian Bridge Alliance (San Diego, CA)
“Our singular focus is to ensure the new immigrants’ success as they navigate their new lives in the United States. While our current work is focused more on this crisis, our long-term vision is to expand the visibility and reach of the Haitian community in California and to assist wherever we are needed.”
No Border Wall Coalition (Laredo, TX)
“Laredo, TX has become ground zero in the fight against the Administration’s border wall. Our historic border community lies directly in the destructive path of these absurd expansion plans. More than 40 laws have been waived in a desperate attempt to legally secure large sections of the wall during this high-stakes election year. We plan to stop it, but we can’t do it alone. We’re taking on the federal government through a multi-pronged approach that includes legal challenges and a grassroots mobilization effort.”
Southern Border Communities Coalition (Border-wide)
Bringing together 60 organizations from California to Texas, Southern Border Communities Coalition looks to ensure fair and accountable border enforcement, humane and rational immigration policy, and a positive quality of life for border communities. Its website has up-do-date border accountability information, including a section documenting Border Patrol murders since 20210