Mission Statement (What We Do)

We work to advance the human rights of all migrants by increasing legal knowledge and access to legal services.

We carry out our mission by providing free and low-cost legal services to detained, low-income immigrants facing removal from the United States at the third largest adult detention center in the U.S.: the South Texas Detention Complex located 65 miles southwest of San Antonio in Pearsall, Texas (bed capacity: 1900).

We support all immigrants regardless of nationality, race / ethnicity / tribe, religion, political opinion, gender, sexual orientation / gender identity, or age.

Vision Statement (What We Hope for the World)

We envision a world where all detained migrants have access to the legal knowledge and legal services necessary to protect and fully exercise their human rights.

[R]ecognition of the inherent dignity and of the equal and inalienable rights of all members of the human family is the foundation of freedom, justice and peace in the world.

– Preamble to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights

Key Human Rights We Work to Protect

We work to ensure every migrant’s rights are recognized and respected, both by helping them flee situations of persecution and by helping them access their rights here in the United States. These include:

    • The right to seek asylum
    • The right to life
    • The right to liberty and security, including freedom from arbitrary arrest and detention
    • The right to be free from torture, including the right to humane conditions of detention such as appropriate medical care and nutrition
    • The right to due process before a competent, independent, and impartial tribunal, including the right to the presumption of innocence
    • The right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion
    • The right to freedom of opinion and expression, including the freedom of assembly and association
    • The right to take part in the government of one’s country
    • The right to marry and found a family
    • The right to choose one’s employment and work in just conditions
    • The right to be treated equally

 

Core Values

We strive to incorporate the following core values into all of our actions and decision-making:

    • Integrity
    • Empathy
    • Transparency

 

Where We Work

South Texas Detention Facility                       Karnes County Correctional Center

South Texas Detention Complex                        Karnes County Correctional Center

                                                                            (currently not housing immigrants)

 

How We Carry Out Our Work

The Migrant Center for Human Rights is a Texas nonprofit legal service organization providing free and low-cost legal services to men and women who are detained in immigration custody. Specifically, we provide legal support and representation to asylum seekers from around the world who are being held in immigration detention in the San Antonio area. We also submit requests for release from detention (parole, bond, and habeas corpus) and advocate on access to counsel issues, such as helping reunify split families and finding ways for non-English speakers to consult with and work with an attorney (language access). We work to:

  • Protect and promote immigrants’ due process rights and other human rights
  • Cultivate and expand attorney and volunteer engagement
  • Educate the public about immigration issues and amplify immigrants’ voices
  • Hold the U.S. government accountable for upholding immigrants’ human rights

We use four methods to carry out our work:

Human Rights Learning Legal Services
Community Engagement Public Policy Advocacy