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Due to global instability and increased mobility, the world has experienced a dramatic increase in the number of people seeking asylum since the organization was founded. And while international law provides the right to seek and enjoy asylum from persecution, without access to counsel, that right remains illusory.

The Advocates has grown its pro bono asylum project to meet this demand. When the project launched in 1984, it handled just three cases. By 2022, as The Advocates closed its fourth decade, that number reached 3000.

The Advocates continues to mobilize pro bono professionals to help victims of human rights abuses living in the Upper Midwest navigate complex immigration legal proceedings. Today, our clients include people fleeing persecution and torture in search of asylum, unaccompanied children facing immigration proceedings on their own, victims of human trafficking, and people detained by federal immigration officials.

The numbers can be overwhelming, but victory is measured one life at a time.