Our Policy and Advocacy
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Asylum
As of May 2024, more than 120 million people have been forcibly displaced worldwide. The Policy and Advocacy Division brings expertise from direct experience working with forced and voluntary migrants. In addition, we synthesize insights from USCRI’s programs with unaccompanied children, legal services, refugee resettlement, and victims of human trafficking to identify and create solutions for individuals whose protection needs fall outside legal definitions of refugee or asylee.
Read Our Latest Posts on Asylum
USCRI Know Your Rights and Safety Planning
Regardless of immigration status, all individuals in the United States have guaranteed rights under the Constitution. The following guide is to inform survivors of human trafficking, asylum seekers, parolees, and other non-U.S. citizens of their legal rights in various situations with law enforcement and immigration officers. The Know Your Rights guide contains information on your rights when […]
Island of Peace No More: Forced Migration from Ecuador
Cover photo: Fundación Municipal Bienal de Cuenca Ecuador, wedged between decades-long civil wars in Colombia and Peru, was once known as an island of peace in the Andes. In 2020, it had a homicide rate of 6.7 per 100,000 inhabitants, one of the lowest in the region. Today, drug trafficking and associated gang violence have […]
CALL TO ACTION – Mariposas de la Frontera: Uplifting the Stories of Asylum Seekers at the U.S.- Mexico Border
CALL TO ACTION –Mariposas de la Frontera: Uplifting the Stories of Asylum Seekers at the U.S.-Mexico Border Join USCRI & IINE in uplifting the voices of #lasmariposasdelafrontera, asylum seekers at the U.S.-Mexico border! Over the past two years, the U.S. Government has made considerable changes to asylum and migrant processing at the southern U.S. border. […]
Refugees
Thousands of refugee and immigrant children come to the United States alone or with their families each year, many having fled life-threatening dangers in their countries of origin. The Policy and Advocacy Division brings policy expertise to advocacy at the federal level, and translates what we see on the ground as a direct provider of services to unaccompanied child migrants through our shelter, implements what . In particular, USCRI engages in developing improved policy and advocating for vulnerable children in migration in the following areas: expanding legal protection for unaccompanied children, improving child welfare during and after government custody, extending post-release services and enlarging the number of child advocates, expanding of the Unaccompanied Refugee Minor (URM) program, enhancing screening for trafficking at U.S. borders, and increasing targeted programming for child migrants in Central America, among others.
Read Our Latest Posts on Refugees
The Humanitarian and Displacement Situation in Ukraine – October 2024
This is an update and supplement to USCRI’s March 2024 report on the Humanitarian Situation in Ukraine. Mass Displacement The mass displacement crisis continues in Ukraine. The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) reports that over 6.7 million refugees from Ukraine have fled for protection in other countries. Over 6 million Ukrainian refugees […]
Ukraine: An Update on the Mass Displacement Crisis
This is an update and supplement to USCRI’s March 2024 report on the Humanitarian Situation in Ukraine. Mass Displacement The mass displacement crisis continues in Ukraine. Around 6 million Ukrainian refugees are hosted by European countries, and about 400,000 Ukrainians are hosted by Canada and the United States. Poland previously hosted the largest number […]
Recovering Childhood Report: An Update on Children in Kenya’s Refugee Camps
In December 2023, the U.S. Committee for Refugees and Immigrants (USCRI) published its report, Recovering Childhood: Access to Education & Protection for Children in Kenya’s Refugee Camps, following field visits to Dadaab and Kakuma refugee camps and Kalobeyei Settlement. During the visits, USCRI Policy Analyst Victoria Walker examined the experiences of refugee children in the […]
Trafficking in Persons
In the United States, the scope of both domestic and foreign-national human trafficking is significant. Although the exact figures are unknown, most estimates converge on tens of thousands to low hundreds of thousands of new cases annually. As the national grantee of the Trafficking Victim Assistance Program (TVAP), USCRI is in a unique position to view trafficking issues across the United States and instigate policy changes based on the realities seen through the eyes of survivors. USCRI advocates for the following policy changes in the area of trafficking in persons: removing barriers in the certification process for survivors to receive benefits and services, an expedited visa process and work authorization for survivors, and increased funding for survivor services, among others.
Read Our Latest Posts on Trafficking
Decoding the Data Surrounding Human Trafficking
Human trafficking is a widespread public health issue that impacts regions, countries, communities, families, and individuals. While the public has become more aware of human trafficking over the past 25 years, the true magnitude of this crime remains unknown. Global estimates of individuals in human trafficking situations range from 27 to 50 million. The discrepancy […]
Violence in Myanmar Intensifying Humanitarian Needs
The following was written as a blog post for InterAction by USCRI policy analyst Aaron Nodjomian-Escajeda in his role as the co-chair for InterAction’s Myanmar Bangladesh Working Group. Since October 2023, resistance forces in Myanmar have gained territorial control across different parts of Myanmar. Expanded resistance has been accompanied by increased losses for the […]
USCRI Know Your Rights: A Guide for Survivors of Human Trafficking, Asylum Seekers, Parolees, and Immigrants
Regardless of immigration status, all individuals in the United States have guaranteed rights under the Constitution. The following guide is to inform survivors of human trafficking, asylum seekers, parolees, and other immigrants of their legal rights in various situations with law enforcement and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). The contents include: Your Rights […]
Child Migration
Thousands of refugee and immigrant children come to the United States alone or with their families each year, many having fled life-threatening dangers in their countries of origin. The Policy and Advocacy Division brings policy expertise to advocacy at the federal level, and translates what we see on the ground as a direct provider of services to unaccompanied child migrants through our shelter, implements what . In particular, USCRI engages in developing improved policy and advocating for vulnerable children in migration in the following areas: expanding legal protection for unaccompanied children, improving child welfare during and after government custody, extending post-release services and enlarging the number of child advocates, expanding of the Unaccompanied Refugee Minor (URM) program, enhancing screening for trafficking at U.S. borders, and increasing targeted programming for child migrants in Central America, among others.
Read Our Latest Posts on Child Migration
Webinar: Addressing the Needs of Unaccompanied & Separated Children in Displacement Settings
Unaccompanied and separated children are among the most vulnerable populations affected by conflict and humanitarian crises. They face heightened risks of violence, exploitation, and neglect, with significant barriers to accessing essential services and protection mechanisms. In East Africa and surrounding subregions, children have been forced to migrate as violence, unrest, and climate shocks worsen. To […]
When Home is Gone: Unaccompanied & Separated Children in East Africa
Imagine you are a child, living in armed conflict when suddenly explosions fill your community and destruction surrounds you—you flee—and as people scatter, screaming and running for safety, you lose sight of your parents in the chaos. Home is gone and so is your family. Imagine you are a child, and severe drought has gripped […]
United Voices: Answering the Call of Immigrant Children & Youth
Without the inclusion of children and youth in our present, there can be no sustainable future or peace. They are the next generation; not only will they inherit the consequences of our decisions, but they already bear the greatest burdens of our inaction. Children and youth are grappling with a lack of safety and stability […]
Climate Migration
In recent years, the changing world environment has exacerbated migration pressures worldwide. With global climate change, desertification, and rising oceans, the concept of “environmental refugees” has gained prominence in policy discussions and public consciousness. Environmental refugees are those migrants forced to leave their homes due to environmental disruption that jeopardizes their existence and quality of life. As a signing member of InterAction’s Global Compact on Environmental Refugees, USCRI’s Policy and Advocacy Division develops innovative policy around this more novel area of environmental-refugee advocacy to ensure that these vulnerable refugees access the rights afforded to them under international law.
Read Our Latest Posts on Climate Migration
Ecocide as a Call to Urgency: The Need to Address Climate Displacement
Cover Photo: Michael Adams In early September, Vanuatu, Fiji, and Samoa filed a formal request to recognize ecocide—purposeful and severe environmental destruction—as a crime in the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court (ICC). If the request is approved, ecocide would be recognized as a gross violation of international law akin to war crimes and […]
Mpox Outbreak: How International Indifference Is Threatening Refugees
THE PROBLEM A new viral outbreak threatens the health and safety of 42 million forcibly displaced people in Africa. A new strain of mpox, a virus that caused a worldwide outbreak in 2022, currently threatens refugee and displaced populations in Africa, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) is at the epicenter. In the […]
Climate Displaced Persons Act Would Create Vital New Humanitarian Pathway
The U.S. Committee for Refugees and Immigrants (USCRI) is pleased that the Climate Displaced Persons Act is being reintroduced in the 118th Congress by Sen. Ed Markey of Massachusetts and Rep. Nydia Velázquez of New York. Climate-related events like storms, floods, and droughts are increasingly forcing people from their homes across the world. However, many […]
