On July 24, The Advocates was awarded a Certificate of Recognition from the Liberian Community in St. Paul, MN for its contribution to the restoration of peace in Liberia, and the protection of Liberian immigrants in the U.S.

The Advocates has hosted a booth at the Great Minnesota Get Together since 2005. This year, The Advocates will be at the State Fair August 26 - September 6 to raise awareness about the important contributions immigrants make to our communities and our nation. Please join us at booth #69 in the Lower Grandstand!

Through the efforts of volunteer attorney Akeem Soboyede, an Advocates client seeking asylum will now be able to obtain his work permit and support himself as he awaits the asylum hearing next January. 

The United Nations General Assembly voted unanimously to create a new entity to accelerate progress in meeting the needs of women and girls worldwide. The establishment of the UN Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women — to be known as UN Women — is part of the UN reform agenda and a result of years of negotiations between UN Member States and advocacy by the global women’s movement. 

Officials in Herat report that the province, which has among the highest female suicide rate in Afghanistan, has experienced an increase in this rate over the past year. The majority of cases involved women who have moved back to Afghanistan after fleeing to Iran, and experienced the contrast in rights, poverty, and social conditions between the two nations.

Minneapolis (June 22, 2010) – Senator Al Franken (D-MN), joined by co-sponsors Herbert Kohl (D-WI), Robert Menendez (D-NJ), Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), Russ Feingold (D-WI), Richard Durbin (D-IL), and Dianne Feinstein (D-CA), introduced legislation to ensure that the human rights of children and families in the United States are protected during immigration enforcement actions. The HELP Separated Children Act was introduced June 22, 2010.

The United States government released the worldwide Trafficking in Persons Report on June 14, 2010, the first such report to include an analysis of the United States.

As we recognize World Refugee Day on June 20th, 2010 Detention Watch Network calls on President Obama to strengthen the United States' commitment to protecting and respecting the human rights of refugees, asylum seekers and migrants held in the U.S. detention system.

Ahmed Sirleaf, Program Associate of the International Justice Program at The Advocates, will receive the Mshale African Community Leadership Award at the Mshale Community Awards. 

Minneapolis (June 1, 2010) – The Advocates for Human Rights expresses grave concerns about the arrest and detention of attorney Peter Erlinder by the Government of Rwanda. Erlinder, a professor of law at William Mitchell College of Law in St. Paul, was arrested by Rwandan police on May 28 after arriving in the country as part of the legal defense team of opposition leader Victoire Ingabire Umuhoza. Both Ingabire and Erlinder face charges of promoting “genocide ideology,” a crime under Rwandan law.