In 2025, The Dominican Sisters ~ Grand Rapids will use our voices and resources to support and highlight organizations, people, and resources that serve immigrants and refugees. We invite you to learn more about Catholic Legal Immigration Network, Inc. (CLINIC).
Embracing the Gospel value of welcoming the stranger, CLINIC promotes the dignity and protects the rights of immigrants in partnership with a dedicated network of Catholic and community legal immigration programs.
Catholic Legal Immigration Network, Inc. (CLINIC)
As it has for 35 years, CLINIC will fight for the rights of immigrants. CLINIC trains legal representatives who provide high-quality and affordable immigration legal services. We develop and sustain a network of nonprofit programs that serve over 500,000 immigrants every year. We cultivate projects that support and defend vulnerable immigrant populations by:
- Providing direct representation for asylum seekers at the U.S.-Mexico border and educating them about their rights;
- Reuniting formerly separated families;
- Increasing legal representation for those in removal proceedings and in detention;
- Providing public education on immigration law and policies; and
- Advocating for fair and just immigration policies that acknowledge the inherent dignity and value of all people.
- History has taught us that people who step up can make a difference.
History
CLINIC was founded by the U.S. Catholic bishops to support a growing network of community and faith-based organizations who were working to meet the overwhelming needs of immigrants seeking legal services following the 1986 legislation that transformed the immigration system, including foreign-born religious workers.
At CLINIC, we always come back to the “why” behind our work. The Catholic social tradition on which we are based articulates the equal, untouchable dignity of all people, and the fact that we are “brothers and sisters all.” CLINIC’s founders saw the dignity and worth of immigrants in the United States who needed legal support to build better futures. Today, CLINIC continues to protect the rights of immigrants that are enshrined in national and international law.
PRIORITIES
CLINIC’s Advocacy Program
Advocacy is one of CLINIC’s core programs. At the local, state, and federal levels, CLINIC’s advocacy staff develop and lead strategies to create law, policy, and systems that ensure the rights and dignity of immigrants. Examples include advocating for the broad use of Temporary Protected Status to safeguard immigrants in the United States, working to create a system that facilitates access to naturalization for all, and combatting enforcement at the state and local levels that hurts our communities.
CLINIC’s advocacy work is pulled from the expertise of in-house staff, our network of 400 nonprofit immigrant legal services providers — who are serving hundreds of thousands of immigrants on any given days — and advocacy partners. Every aspect of our advocacy work is guided by Catholic social teaching and following the lead of impacted communities.
Read CLINIC’s 2024 Advocacy Priorities here.
KNOW SOMEBODY WHO NEEDS LEGAL HELP?
Find a local affiliate https://www.cliniclegal.org/find-legal-help/affiliates/directory
CONTACT
Catholic Legal Immigration Network, Inc. is based out of Silver Spring, Maryland (Washington, D.C. metropolitan area), with an office in Oakland, California, and additional staff working from locations throughout the country. Questions and inquiries can be sent to national@cliniclegal.org.
National Office
Phone: (301) 565-4800
Fax: (301) 565-4824
