Students from Loyola University Chicago take a break from a tour of the border fence in Brownsville, TX and listen intently to a presentation by tour leader Beatriz Jones.
ProBAR would like to send a warm thank you to all the amazing law student volunteers that called our offices home this quarter. Over the course of their visits, the law students – hailing from the University of Texas at Austin School of Law, University of Minnesota Law School, Loyola University Chicago, St. Mary’s University, Georgetown Law, and Catholic University – participated in a series of trainings and projects led by ProBAR staff in our offices. Their efforts included assisting asylum-seekers with preparations for their credible fear interviews, helping people prepare applications for work permit authorizations in our Access to Work clinic, and supporting humanitarian aid efforts at the Catholic Charities Humanitarian Respite Center in McAllen.
In addition to providing legal services, student volunteers have multiple hands-on opportunities to learn about the nature of immigration work on the border. Cohorts are guided through visits to detention centers, observe immigration court proceedings, and receive tours of the border wall, beginning in a stretch of land in Brownsville, Texas, commonly referred to as “No Man’s Land” and concluding with observation of the city’s ports of entry. For many students, this is their first time seeing the border wall in-person, and the experience often provides added context for the impact of immigration policy in South Texas. “I chose this immigration class…because immigration intersects with everything”, said Kavisha Prajapati, a 2L student from Loyola University Chicago studying Environmental Law. “It was pretty shocking, as someone who doesn’t live here, to see how a fence is constructed on people’s property and cutting the land in half, in which both sides are technically U.S. territory.”
Lindsay Schenk, Pro Bono Counsel at ProBAR and leader of Pro Bono volunteer programs, said “it was an absolute pleasure working with the students. They were very professional.” A consensus among students was that ProBAR staff made them feel welcome throughout the week.
University of Minnesota law student Evan Bracewell recommends the volunteer program to future students, saying “it’s been a great learning experience…letting me know whether immigration law is something that lies ahead for me in my future or just as a Pro Bono part of my life.”
To learn more about the many ways you can volunteer with ProBAR, see our Get Involved page.