Past Events

Over the last two decades, waves of immigrants have made rural communities their homes. According to the Pew Research Center, from 2000 to 2018 immigrants accounted for 37 percent of overall rural population growth. Driven by demand for labor in the argricultural, meat packing, and dairy processing industries, this growth has led to an economic revival of parts of rural America where communities were once on the decline.

Building on the legacy of Queer and Trans elders and pioneers, LGBTQ immigrant and refugee leaders continue to lead the fight for societal transformation. For years, these leaders have advocated for increased funding to support LGBTQ immigrant communities, particularly to address lack of access to medical care and asylum and detention issues (including sexual assault). A 2017 Congressional inquiry found that LGBTQ immigrants are 97 times more likely to be sexually victimized than non-LGBTQ people while in ICE custody. However, LGTBQ immigrant issues continue to receive less funding when compared to overall dollar amounts invested in LGBTQ communities.

In 2022 GCIR adopted a policy agenda informed by input from immigrant justice movement leaders, GCIR members, and other stakeholders. The agenda aims to address the challenges that deny individuals the freedom to stay, move, work, transform, and thrive, and reflects potential solutions identified by the immigrant justice movement for addressing these challenges.

Join GCIR for a discussion – informed by experts from across the country – of the future of the legal services landscape, along with a dive into our recent report: 2022 Update: Immigration Legal Services in California: A Time for Bold Action.