National Network for Immigrant and Refugee Rights

The National Network for Immigrant & Refugee Rights (NNIRR) is a center for human rights advocacy and education and works to defend and expand the rights of all immigrants and refugees, regardless of immigration status. With our alliance of members, constituents and partners, we are committed to advancing human rights and securing healthy, safe and peaceful lives for all. We especially emphasize the intersections of migration with other social and economic issues, working across key sectors, particularly in faith, labor, environmental, anti-racist, LGBT and women's movements, and bridge the work of civil society for rights and justice for migrants at the local, national and interna... read more The National Network for Immigrant & Refugee Rights (NNIRR) is a center for human rights advocacy and education and works to defend and expand the rights of all immigrants and refugees, regardless of immigration status. With our alliance of members, constituents and partners, we are committed to advancing human rights and securing healthy, safe and peaceful lives for all. We especially emphasize the intersections of migration with other social and economic issues, working across key sectors, particularly in faith, labor, environmental, anti-racist, LGBT and women's movements, and bridge the work of civil society for rights and justice for migrants at the local, national and international levels. With our members, partners and allies, we aim to strengthen shared, human rights-based values and collaborative strategies and activities. We further recognize the unparalleled change in global political and economic structures which has exacerbated regional, national and international patterns of migration and emphasize the need to build international support and cooperation to strengthen the rights, welfare and safety of migrants and refugees. NNIRR: - advocates for human rights-based policies at national and international levels - provides a strategic space for networking, analysis and planning, including grassroots groups and advocacy partners - conducts educational initiatives, especially through popular education methodology and tools, raise awareness and to build capacity - shares information and critical analyses through events, online forums and social media, challenging misinformation and contributing to a "narrative shift" on the topic of immigration in the US and globally NNIRR is a founding member of both the Global Coalition on Migration and Women in Migration Network, and has been active in global civil society participation in the shaping of the UN's Compact for Migration formally approved in December 2018. NNIRR lifts up leadership of immigrant communities, pushing participation in social justice arenas where immigrant voices have been traditionally marginalized, both in the US and globally. Our strategies include organizing and advocacy in defense of human rights-based migration policies; networking, analysis and planning; educational initiatives and strategic communications; collaboration on resistance actions; articulating an immigration "narrative shift"; and promoting human rights values and principles within long-view movement-building. NNIRR's current program areas: -- Immigration Policy & Justice-- Providing critical information and analysis, policy guidance and advocacy outreach and coordination. Narratives and policy challenges are similar at domestic and international levels: migrant returns and deportations; detention policies; resistance to regularization programs and challenges for integrations; labor migration policies and concerns; climate change impacts on displacing populations; investment in border militarization and securitization; and more. At both levels, multiple actors are challenging these narrow and xenophobic proposals, providing new/renewed opportunities to broaden the human rights community, to inject migrant voices into the dominant debates, articulate progressive reforms, and sideline-at least-the most hard-lined and anti-immigrant proposals. -- Just Borders -- To shine a spotlight on the issues and conditions facing the US-Mexico border region and lift up the work of local community groups who are working to prevent migrant deaths, resist militarization of the region, and fight to protect rights, safety and health of their communities. advocate against further militarization of the country's borders. This program aims to: * Expose human rights abuses & the rise in migrant deaths * Call for an end to racial profiling and violations of rights and due process * Push for demilitarization of the border * Ensure community voices are present in policy affecting the region * Advocate for international migrants' rights and rights for all at borders -- International Migrant Rights -- Advancing the human rights of migrants, through implementation of the new UN Global Compact for Migration and in particular, promoting human rights at international borders and the rights of migrant women. The most significant policy development in the arena of international migration is the United Nations' "Global Compact for Migration" (GCM). Launched at the end of 2016, negotiations concluded in July after an 18-month process of consultations among governments and other stakeholders, and intergovernmental negotiations. The Compact was approved in Marrakech in December 2018. NNIRR actively participated in civil society advocacy throughout the process, providing oral and written interventions and coordinating with other civil society actors to promote specific human rights, including labor rights in the Compact. NNIRR coordinated the consultation process among U.S. and Canadian civil society groups, including a major convening of sixty organizations in Washington, DC in September 2017 and continuing with ongoing updates. Although the Compact will be a non-binding document, the process has lifted the narrative on global migration to include the need to provide safe, regular migration, address forced migration, human treatment of migrants throughout their migration process, and other concerns, including integration, and combatting racism and xenophobia. While the success of the Compact will rest in its implementation and adherence by states, the process is a significant one that spotlights the crises of migration today as well as standards and governance in the future. -- Climate Change & Migrant Rights initiative -- This project aims to build strategic, ongoing relations, generate common understandings, produce shared values and messages, and coordinate on resources and actions to raise greater awareness and impact narrative and policies in both arenas. Our aim is to strengthen, raise and amplify the voices of affected communities and to bring a strong human rights filter to the growing movement for climate justice, bringing together unified frameworks, strategies and common activities addressing two of the most significant issues of our time, climate change and migration.