Image
Projects
MIRC staff take active leadership roles in regional, statewide and national coalitions and organizations including the Michigan Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights, Protecting Immigrant Families Michigan, and many other groups promoting immigrant rights and racial equity.
MIRC’s Farmworker & Immigrant Worker Rights practice provides legal advice and representation to low-wage migrant and seasonal farmworkers and immigrant workers experiencing employment-related legal issues.
MIRC engages in impact work addressing key immigrant rights issues in the state of Michigan. As part of these efforts, MIRC staff directly represents clients facing barriers to realizing their rights and accessing services due to their immigration status, and also generates legal analysis of policies that have the potential to adversely impact the immigrant community. MIRC places special emphasis on issues affecting immigrant children and the children of immigrants.
Immigration law is complex, confusing, and always changing. We see this most acutely in Immigration Court when non-citizens are unrepresented. (Even people facing deportation only have a right to a lawyer if they can afford one!) We are committed to helping as many Michiganders as possible navigate these laws and systems. To do so, we, along with our partners at the Acacia Center for Justice, launched the Immigration Court Helpdesk and Family Group Legal Orientation Program (collective, Helpdesk) program in December 2021 to assist unrepresented non-citizens in removal proceedings better understand their rights, the law, and overall, what to expect moving forward.
All of our services are free to our clients, and immigration cases can be long and complex, so we have to make difficult decisions about what cases we can take for full representation. The communities we serve bring us the immigration law problems they need help with, and based on their feedback, their situations, and what funding we can find to meet the needs, we decide on "priority" cases that we can accept for full representation. When a person seeking help calls MIRC at (734) 239-6863, we ask screening questions. If the person's case is not within our priorities, we share legal information and referrals but we do not accept their case. If it is within our priorities, we conduct a full intake so that we can learn all about the case and make a decision about whether we can accept it either for direct representation with MIRC or placement with a pro bono attorney. When a case is outside of our priorities, it doesn't mean that we don't care about the person or their legal problem; it means that we don't have enough resources to take it on.
MIRC’s Pro Bono Panel provides assistance to victims of domestic abuse or serious crimes who qualify for relief pursuant to the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) or the Victims of Trafficking and Violence Protection Act (VTVPA, more commonly known by the "U" and "T" visas it provides). These two legal protections help vulnerable immigrants and their dependents to come forward and escape violent relationships or situations where they would otherwise not do so because of their undocumented or expired immigration status. VAWA self-petitions are for battered spouses and children of United States citizens or Lawful Permanent Residents (LPRs), battered parents of adult U.S. citizens, or the parents of abused children. Essentially, it allows a battered immigrant to self-petition without the involvement of their abusive spouse or family member. U Visas are a special remedy for immigrant victims of certain serious crimes. Most of our U visa clients are survivors of domestic violence or sexual assault.
MIRC has a particular interest and focus on promoting naturalization. To learn more about citizenship and naturalization generally, visit our friends at Michigan Legal Help.
MIRC represents all unaccompanied children who come to Michigan in federal immigration custody. We also represent children who have been released from custody and other children who may be eligible for Special Immigrant Juvenile Status (SIJS). Our unaccompanied children's team has represented every child brought to Michigan in federal immigration custody after being unlawfully separated from family at the border.
After 10 successful years at the Michigan Immigrant Rights Center (MIRC), Welcoming Michigan has moved to a new organizational home at Global Detroit. Over the years Welcoming Michigan has worked with community based organizations and local governments across the state to create more immigrant-friendly communities. The move came as MIRC refocused its work on immigration law and policy.