Center For Gender & Refugee Studies (CGRS)

The Center for Gender & Refugee Studies (CGRS) protects the fundamental human rights of women, children, LGBTQ+ individuals, and others who flee persecution, combining sophisticated legal strategies with policy advocacy and human rights interventions to advance protections for refugees. We envision a world where no refugee is denied her right to protection and we strive to achieve this vision by: - Providing technical assistance and training to attorneys representing asylum seekers in the United States and abroad; - Partnering with medical and mental health professionals to provide crucial documentation for asylum seekers who have survived torture and trauma; - Tracking and monitoring the outcomes of asylum cases nationwide at all levels of immigration adjudication to identify decision-making trends; - Undertaking strategic litigation to advance sound asylum laws and defend the due process rights of asylum seekers; - Engaging in policy advocacy to align U.S. policies with international human rights norms; and - Conducting international human rights research and advocacy to document human rights abuses and analyze the root causes that force individuals to flee their home countries.