Final Lines of Defense: Explaining Policy Advocacy by Immigrant-Serving Organizations

Abstract

Nonprofit scholars have developed a rich literature on nonprofit advocacy. While the literature is rich, however, gaps remain in our collective knowledge, especially regarding specific sectors of nonprofit human service organizations. Here, we apply existing theory on advocacy by human service organizations to an important subset of the nonprofit community, that being immigrant-serving organizations (ISOs). Most prior research on nonprofit advocacy has not focused on politically polarized issues, such as contemporary immigration policy. Using a nationwide survey of ISOs, we find that unlike other types of human service organizations, the majority of ISOs do engage in at least some forms of policy advocacy. However, those that report using the H-election status on their Form 990s are significantly more likely to engage in advocacy and do so to a wide variety of policymakers, including legislators, chief executives, and even local law enforcement agencies. H-election groups are also more likely to perceive their advocacy activities as effective. These findings add to the evolving knowledge on when and how human service groups seek policy change for marginalized groups.

Immigrant-Serving Organizations and Local Law Enforcement: Do Nonprofits Predict Cooperation with ICE?

“…The highly complicated-and many would argue intentionally confusing-U.S. immigration system has made the need for immigration legal aid more pressing than ever (de Leon & Roach, 2013). Indeed, in a recent study, the authors of this piece found strong evidence that ISOs providing pro bono legal aid are effective at reducing local ICE removals through the agency's S-Comm program (Calderon et al, 2021).…”

“…Policymakers to whom groups advocated varied greatly, from 69.2% saying they petitioned their state legislature to only 49.5% who reported advocating to the governor's office (Calderon et al, 2021).…”

How Local Contexts Matter for Local Immigrant Policies

“…As a result, foreign-born individuals express stronger support for sanctuary city policies which can result in more supportive local policies (Casellas and Wallace 2020). Institutions such as labor organizations and local nonprofits can mobilize immigrant electoral activity even absent citizenship and the ability to vote (Varsanyi 2005; Calderon, Chand, and Hawes 2021) and anti-immigrant local policies can also stimulate political actions on the parts of immigrants and their allies (Benjamin-Alvarado, DeSipio, and Montoya 2009; Zepeda-Millán 2016). The contact hypothesis would also suggest that communities with greater diversity offer more opportunities for interactions among groups, leading to reduced stereotypes and potentially more support for immigrants (Connolly 2000).…”

Policy Advocacy and NGOs Assisting Immigrants: Legitimacy, Accountability and the Perceived Attitude of the Majority

“…It occurs mainly in social work studies (Mosley 2010;MacIndoe and Whalen 2013;De Corte et al 2021). In recent years, specifically with the involvement of NGOs assisting immigrants in PA, the topic has occurred in several researches (Ambrosini 2013;Chin 2018;Follis 2019;Trei 2021;Calderon et al 2021); however, none of them delved very deeply into the question of legitimacy and accountability associated with this activity. Ambrosini (2013) explored the motivations, strategies, coalitions, and outcomes of the activities of two specific Italian NGOs.…”

“…Trei (2021) attempted to explain the involvement of Estonian NGOs in asylum policy decision making on the national level. Calderon et al (2021) addressed the general questions of engagement of American immigrants assisting organizations in policy advocacy (mainly if they engage, when yes, and when no). Thus, the presented study complements the understanding of NGOs involvement in policy advocacy.…”