In letters to President Obama and Secretary of State Clinton, The Advocates for Human Rights expressed deep concern over the upcoming visit to the U.S. by Ethiopian President Meles Zenawi. Zenawi will be in the U.S. on May 18 as part of the G8 Summit to discuss food security issues. The Advocates' concern stems from the Government of Ethiopia's use of food as a tool of political repression, particularly against disadvantaged ethnic groups. 

The Advocates congratulates our Refugee and Immigrant Program volunteer attorney, Sarah McGuire, on helping a client from Ethiopia obtain asylum. 

Beatríz Menanteau, staff attorney with the Women's Program at The Advocates for Human Rights, has been elected President of the Minnesota Hispanic Bar Association.

Take Action! On Tuesday, May 8, the House Judiciary Committee considers H.R. 4970 (Rep. Adams, R-FL), a version of the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) that severely undermines protection of immigrant victims of domestic violence, sexual assault, and other serious crimes. Tell House Speaker John Boehner (R-OH) and your Representative: “Please don’t eliminate VAWA protections for immigrant women.  Oppose H.R. 4970.”

The Advocates' Sarah Herder and Michele Garnett McKenzie presented "Community Education Strategies for Immigration Legal Providers," a webinar providing practical tips for educating community members about immigration issues. The Advocates talked about outreach activities and strategies, including a new tool for public education, the Energy for a Nation Curriculum manual.

The Advocates and volunteers will attend the Association of Women’s Rights in Development (AWID) Forum this week in Istanbul, Turkey. The international conference brings together advocates for women’s rights from around the world.

The Advocates is happy to announce that the One Voice Minnesota Project has made it to the next round in Minnesota Idea Open's Challenge III: Working Together Across Cultures and Faiths. Out of 605 ideas received, the project is one of the top 67 ideas to advance into the next round of judging!

The Advocates is participating in the Jumo GOOD Challenge for Organizations, offering $2,500 for the social change project that receives the most votes between April 3 and April 17. The Advocates' project provides education to Nepalese children at risk of forced child labor. Click here to vote for The Advocates and help stop child labor in Nepal!

In, "Justice delayed may be justice denied for Minnesota Cambodians," The Advocates' Deputy Director Jennifer Prestholdt and Staff Attorney Amy Bergquist call for an end to the Cambodian government’s culture of impunity.

The Advocates for Human Rights submitted a written statement for the record in the March 28, 2012, House Immigration Subcommittee hearing "Holiday on ICE: The U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s New Immigration Detention Standards." 

The Advocates is very excited to report a victorious decision from the Board of Immigration Appeals. In 2009, Mr. Y* was denied asylum but granted Withholding of Removal by an immigration judge. Withholding of Removal is a form of relief that allows an individual to remain in the U.S. indefinitely and work, but does not permit family reunification, travel outside the United States, or becoming a permanent resident or citizen. This week, we learned that thanks to the University of Minnesota's Asylum Law Project students Joe Cabelka and Joe Schauer, who wrote the appeal brief in January 2010, Mr. Y has won asylum!

The Advocates authored the January 30 national submission to the UN Special Rapporteur on the Human Rights of Migrants, which highlighted systemic failures of the United States to protect against arbitrary and prolonged detention and against detention in inhumane conditions. The Advocates is also working on several other submissions to the United Nations.