UMass Boston
Making a Difference, Together
In partnership with UMass Boston and the Political Science Department, SCIJ and UMass Boston are empowering students to advocate for immigrant justice and social change.
How it Works
Training Program
Students enrolled at UMass Boston (UMB) join SCIJ’s Law & Immigration Training Program during the fall semester. In SCIJ’s intensive, semester-long training program, students gain a deep knowledge of immigration law, learn about the history of and systemic issues with US immigration, and build skills in community organizing. Through this training and by also equipping students with hands-on experience through exercises such as mock interviews and public narrative storytelling, SCIJ is preparing students to provide legal support to immigrants and to organize for policy change.
Legal Justice
After students are trained, they’re mobilized to provide representation to asylum seekers by pairing up with SCIJ’s partner immigration attorney from other nonprofits and private firms on pro bono cases. Students work on all aspects of an asylum case, including meeting with clients, collecting evidence, and drafting legal documents. During this process, SCIJ supports students through case rounds, workshops, and individual check-ins.
Community Organizing
As students work on cases, they will develop community organizing strategies with clients and local immigrant communities to advocate for issues important to them.
Get Involved
Is immigrant justice important to you? Do you come from an immigrant background? Interested in law or politics? Join the Student Clinic for Immigrant Justice at UMass Boston and get trained so you can fight for immigrant justice and advocate for asylum seekers. Click below to contact us and get involved.
Professor Luis F. Jiménez, PhD
Associate Professor of Political Science, UMass Boston
“Through this partnership, UMass Boston students gain the skills they need to take their advocacy and social justice work on immigrant rights to the next level, to support individuals seeking asylum in our community, and to be part of a broader movement for social change."
Meet the Team at UMass Boston
Class of 2022
+Alondra Bobadilla (She/Her/Hers)
Why is Immigrant Justice Important to you?
God made no borders. Justice is a human right.
Favorite Quote
“We delight in the beauty of the butterfly, but rarely admit the changes it has gone through to achieve that beauty” -- Maya Angelou
+Florencia Feoli (She/Her/Hers)
Why is Immigrant Justice Important to you?
As an immigrant, I have lived firsthand the struggles immigrants go through every day in the United States. I think it is important to educate ourselves and advocates for those who are struggling everyday.
Favorite Quote
“The greatest nations are defined by how they treat their weakest inhabitants” -- Jorge Ramos
+Gabriela (Gaby) Garcia (She/Her/Hers)
Why is Immigrant Justice Important to you?
Because it allows people to empower themselves and by being aware of their rights they can have more control over the destiny of their lives.
Favorite Quote
"You are not the world, but you are everything that makes the world good" -- Kiera Cass
+Josue Luis Perez (He/Him/His)
Why is Immigrant Justice Important to you?
My parents' process to arriving to the United States from a war torn country has made immigration justice important to me.
Favorite Quote
"Cogito, ergo sum"
+Kaleigh Lizotte (She/Her/Hers)
Why is Immigrant Justice Important to you?
Immigrant justice is important to me because I believe everyone has the right to live in a more compassionate, equitable world where people feel safe and are not treated differently for their decision to come to this country. As a Hispanic woman, I am passionate about making sure that people like me and all other immigrants are treated with human dignity through the complicated legal systems they must face seeking refuge.
Favorite Quote
"It is the duty of every citizen to protect the rights of others." -- Martin Luther King Jr.
+Katherine Ramirez (She/Her/Hers)
Why is Immigrant Justice Important to you?
I come from a family of immigrants and I want to help immigrants like my family receive the representation and opportunities that they deserve.
Favorite Quote
"paciencia y fe" -- my mom
+Nelfry Velez Reyes (He/Him/His)
Why is Immigrant Justice Important to you?
Immigrant Justice is important to me because I believe that everyone must be treated with dignity and we should all have a fair opportunity to develop in society.
Favorite Quote
"There is always an easy solution to every human problem." -- H. L. Mencken
+Sahar Sabir (She/Her/Hers)
Why is Immigrant Justice Important to you?
As a daughter of immigrant parent, I would love to be able to give back and help other's achieve their dream.
Favorite Quote
"The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams." -- Eleanor Roosevelt
+Sonia Baez (She/They)
Why is Immigrant Justice Important to you?
Immigrant justice is important to me because I come from an immigrant family and I have witnessed the struggles and injustice that migrants experience when moving to a new country.
Favorite Quote
“Learn as if you will live forever, live like you will die tomorrow.” -— Mahatma Gandhi
+Nicole Boni (She/Her/Hers)
Why is Immigrant Justice Important to you?
As someone aspiring to work within the criminal justice system, I am aware of the countless flaws and injustices that occur everyday. Immigrant justice is just one, very important, aspect of the system that I have been given the opportunity to positively influence.
Favorite Quote
"Anything's possible, if you've got enough nerve." -- J.K. Rowling
+Shaveen Gachau (She/Her/Hers)
Why is Immigrant Justice Important to you?
I am an immigrant and without the work of immigrant activists and lawyers who helped create a pathway for my family and I to be able to get here, I would not live the life that I live today.
Favorite Quote
"My mission in life is not merely to survive, but to thrive; and to do so with some passion, some compassion, some humor, and some style." -- Maya Angelou
+Valerie Avila Giraldo (She/Her/Hers)
Why is Immigrant Justice Important to you?
I have just migrated to this country, about nine months ago. And since I was a child, I’ve always had my path really clear. I want to be able to help people that are suffering, I don’t mean any kind of suffering. I mean those people that have dreams and have fought for them yet for certain circumstances, they haven’t achieved them. I have the opportunity to reach my dreams every day studying in this university. And I want to be able to help all those other people. I study three majors, I am very hard on myself. Because I know what I want to do, and to become an ambassador, that is my main goal. I have to push hard and one better place to do that then to helping hands by hand with those people that asked me are in this country looking for a dream.
Favorite Quote
"Sapere Aude" -- Horace
+Obsee Tolla (She/Her/Hers)
Why is Immigrant Justice Important to you?
Immigrant justice is important to me because I have a nuanced understanding about the psychological toll taken on by asylum seekers in their involuntary journey from away from home in their pursuit for security in colonial, non-native institutions and social structures. On top of that trauma, asylum seekers are often unsupported in the legal, immigration process. As a first generation American, I have witnessed hardships in the navigation of systemic barriers to access and representation and I am determined to use my privilege to fight for voices that are intentionally being unheard.
Favorite Quote
"A child who is not embraced by the village will burn it down to feel its warmth." -- African Proverb
+Sofia Ruiz (She/Her/Hers)
Why is Immigrant Justice Important to you?
I believe that immigrants deserve rights and protections in the United States of America. They have a right to receive services that help them build their lives in a new country.
Favorite Quote
“I will not let anyone walk through my mind with their dirty feet.” -- Mahatma Gandhi
