Nonprofit Partner Spotlight: Pennsylvania Immigration Resource Center

The Pennsylvania Immigration Resource Center (PIRC) is a nonprofit with the mission of providing free high quality legal services so that vulnerable immigrants and their families have access to justice and a more secure future. PIRC was founded 28 years ago through the selfless commitment of York County residents to promote justice for all individuals. Today, PIRC continues to provide education, advocacy, and access to justice for immigrants in the state through high-quality legal services.
The organization has grown to support immigrants in detention and removal, immigrant survivors of violence, immigrants seeking humanitarian assistance from deportation/family separation, and unaccompanied immigrant children. Specifically, PIRC programs include: Legal Orientation Program (2006), Immigrant Survivors Project (2011), National Qualified Representative Program (2017), the Immigrant Survivors Advocate Network (2018), Unaccompanied Childrens Program (2023), and the Community Response Project (2023).
PIRC provides education and legal services under two main programs: Removal Programs and Community Programs. PIRC’s Removal Programs is the sole provider of Legal Orientation Program (LOP) services in Pennsylvania, providing legal education/pro se assistance to immigrants in detention. During the past three years, PIRC witnessed and weathered the closure of the York County Prison detention facility only for a larger/more rural site to take its place. PIRC staff remain committed to providing immigrants in detention with vital legal information needed to help those detained make informed decisions regarding their cases. Removal Defense Programs also provides direct representation to immigrants in detention and those facing removal. PIRC joined the coalition-based PA Immigrant Family Unity Project in 2019 to provide universal representation to immigrants in removal proceedings, the first of its kind in the state.
PIRC’s Community Programs consists of the Immigrant Survivors Project (ISP), the Immigrant Survivors Advocacy Network (ISAN) and the Community Response Project (CRP). The Immigrant Survivors Project partners with domestic violence/sexual assault agencies to provide immigrant survivors of domestic violence, sexual assault and human trafficking with many critical services: immigration and family law, public benefits advocacy, and victim services. Through ISAN, PIRC continues to build partnerships with 39 violence and sexual assault agencies across the state to increase access to services for immigrant survivors.
Amidst changing migration patterns and immigration policies, PIRC continually adapts to ensure access to immigration legal services for immigrants in our state. To learn more about PIRC’s work and supporting access to justice for immigrants, visit www.pirclaw.org or connect with us on our socials, @pircforjustice!  Join us in our vision to ensure vulnerable immigrants and their families have a voice, dignity, and hope in communities across Pennsylvania.