The mission of the Immigrant & Non-Citizen Rights Clinic is to provide a platform for the exploration, development, and implementation of ideas and strategies to close the growing legal divide between citizens and non-citizens of the United States of America.
The clinic empowers the rising generation of social justice lawyers to confront the degradation of the rights of citizens and non-citizens alike under the guise of homeland security and public safety and motivated by oppressive and discriminatory forces. The Clinic’s objectives are carried out in our legal representations—where we press for progressive, humane and fair interpretations of the law on behalf of members of the most excluded, marginalized, and criminalized groups—as well as through policy and advocacy projects in partnership with community-based organizations.
The INRC was one of the first immigration law clinics in the nation and has a distinguished record of litigation and advocacy in support of communities and their organizations. It remains separate and apart from other clinics because it explores a multiplicity of facets to non-citizenship advocacy and maintains the belief that rights should not be bestowed or denied based on citizenship or geographic location; the U.S. government is the actor denying rights and using the law to deliberately and swiftly create harsh and unjust consequences such as detention and deportation. The INRC examines the problem historically because while these violations are heightened, they are not new.
