Catholic Legal Immigration Network
Encyclopedia
Catholic Legal Immigration Network, Inc. (commonly referred to as CLINIC) is the nation’s largest network of non-profit immigration
programs.
CLINIC operates in the United States
and was founded by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops
(USCCB) in 1988 to facilitate the growth of grassroots immigration programs focusing on low-income groups. Originally assisting just 17 such programs, CLINIC now has a network of over 200 Catholic
and non-Catholic affiliates across 47 states in 290 field offices. Its headquarters is in Washington, DC with regional offices in Boston
, New York
, San Francisco, and Chicago
. The network employs approximately 1,000 attorneys
and paralegals, who serve more than 600,000 low-income immigrants each year.
Immigration
Immigration is the act of foreigners passing or coming into a country for the purpose of permanent residence...
programs.
CLINIC operates in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and was founded by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops
United States Conference of Catholic Bishops
The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops is the episcopal conference of the Catholic Church in the United States. Founded in 1966 as the joint National Conference of Catholic Bishops and United States Catholic Conference, it is composed of all active and retired members of the Catholic...
(USCCB) in 1988 to facilitate the growth of grassroots immigration programs focusing on low-income groups. Originally assisting just 17 such programs, CLINIC now has a network of over 200 Catholic
Catholic
The word catholic comes from the Greek phrase , meaning "on the whole," "according to the whole" or "in general", and is a combination of the Greek words meaning "about" and meaning "whole"...
and non-Catholic affiliates across 47 states in 290 field offices. Its headquarters is in Washington, DC with regional offices in Boston
Boston
Boston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...
, New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
, San Francisco, and Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
. The network employs approximately 1,000 attorneys
Lawyer
A lawyer, according to Black's Law Dictionary, is "a person learned in the law; as an attorney, counsel or solicitor; a person who is practicing law." Law is the system of rules of conduct established by the sovereign government of a society to correct wrongs, maintain the stability of political...
and paralegals, who serve more than 600,000 low-income immigrants each year.
Mission Statement
"To enhance and expand delivery of legal services to indigent and low-income immigrants principally through diocesan immigration programs and to meet the immigration needs identified by the Catholic Church in the United States."Programs
- National Legal Center for Migrants: Brings professional, low-cost legal advice and technical training to non-profit groups across the U.S. specializing in immigration services.
- Center for Citizenship and Immigrant Communities: Seeks to prepare charitable immigration programs to expand their service-delivery capacity and legal support architecture by working with pre-existing organizations at both the national and local levels.
- Center for Immigrant Initiatives and Projects: Serves the most vulnerable immigrant groups through nationally administered programs. Goals include projects aimed specifically at helping to acclimate refugee groups, educating custodians of unaccompanied children, referring asylees to assimilation services, providing pro bonoPro bonoPro bono publico is a Latin phrase generally used to describe professional work undertaken voluntarily and without payment or at a reduced fee as a public service. It is common in the legal profession and is increasingly seen in marketing, technology, and strategy consulting firms...
attorneys for unaccompanied minors, and advocating for protection of victims of domestic violence or human traffickingHuman traffickingHuman trafficking is the illegal trade of human beings for the purposes of reproductive slavery, commercial sexual exploitation, forced labor, or a modern-day form of slavery...
. - Center for Immigrant Rights: Serves immigrant rights by spreading awareness through the media, collaborating with the Migration and Refugee Services of the USCCB, advocating with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, and identifying legal trends and issues affecting immigrants.
- Center for Religious Immigration and Protection: Assists the immigration process of foreign-born religious workers to the U.S. for education, formation, or ministry.
Board of Directors
- The Most Reverend Richard J. Garcia
- President, Bishop of Diocese of Monterey
- Most Reverend Anthony Taylor
- Vice President, Bishop of Little Rock
- Sr. Sally Duffy, SC
- Treasurer, President & Executive Director, SC Ministry Foundation, Inc.
- Ms. Maria Odom
- Secretary, Executive Director, CLINIC
- Most Reverend Nicholas DiMarzio
- Bishop of Brooklyn
- Sr. RayMonda DuVall, CHS
- Executive Director, Catholic Charities of San Diego
- Most Reverend Eusebio Elizondo
- Auxiliary Bishop of Seattle
- Most Reverend José Gomez
- Archbishop of Los Angeles
- Ms. Marguerite (Peg) Harmon
- Executive Director, Catholic Community Services of Southern Arizona
- Mr. James T. McGibbon
- Managing Director, O'Meara, Ferguson, Whelan and Conway
- Most Reverend Eduardo A. Nevares
- Auxiliary Bishop of Phoenix
- Most Reverend Joseph A. Pepe
- Bishop of Las Vegas
- Mr. Vincent F. Pitta
- Pitta & Gibblin LLP
- Most Reverend Kevin W. Vann
- Bishop of Fort Worth
- Most Reverend Thomas G. Wenski
- Archbishop of Miami
- Ms. Nancy Wisdo
- Associate General Secretary, USCCB
- Mr. John Wilhelm
- President - UNITE HERE
- Ambassador Johnny Young
- Executive Director, Migration & Refugee Services
- Most Reverend Luiz Zarama
- Auxiliary Bishop of Atlanta