Join us in celebrating the American Bar Association’s 5th annual ABA Giving Day on October 24! As a special project of the ABA located on the U.S.-Mexico border, ProBAR empowers migrants and asylum seekers by expanding access to legal information, representation, and connection to services.
“Once I realized how it felt to really help someone else, I never looked back.” – Meredith Linsky, Director of ABA Commission on Immigration
Since 1989, ProBAR’s location on the border has cultivated an environment for advocates of all backgrounds to serve unaccompanied children, arriving adults, and families beginning their immigration journey in South Texas. What started off as a project consisting of one attorney coordinator and one paralegal more than 35 years ago has resulted in a robust, dynamic legal aid program serving the Rio Grande Valley – and as of 2023, Houston, Texas!
Oftentimes the first trusted source of legal services and support, ProBAR’s advocates share a crucial value despite providing advocacy in different ways – the innate drive to help others. While ProBAR’s physical space and staff have multiplied over time, it’s clear the heart of our work remains the same.
Here are a few testimonials from ProBAR’s most experienced advocates:
“The people who work here do it out of a sense of deep empathy, passion, and justice... We gain a sense of perspective, a sense of privilege, a sense of seeing the world in a different way.”
Meredith Linsky
Director, ABA Commission on Immigration
“I feel that if we weren’t there [for our clients] then there might be no one else there to provide families with information or resources.”
Damaris “Priscilla” Gamez
Release Support Supervisor at ABA ProBAR
“I’m an advocate first and foremost, in whatever form that takes... For me, it was always less about immigration and more about human dignity and treating people with respect and kindness.”
Lauren Fisher Flores
Legal Director, ABA ProBAR
“We want to give [migrant youth] the tools for them to know that – even if it’s scary and intimidating – they can do it. They can go through the process...with as much knowledge as possible.”
Cindy Bernal
Shelter Services Director, ABA ProBAR
Please help spread the word about ABA Giving Day and consider making an early contribution to our project on the donation site! However you choose to participate, ProBAR remains grateful for your ongoing support!
