Sophisticated Giving Spotlight: The MICA Project
Sophisticated Details: The Migrant and Immigrant Community Action Project (MICA Project) is a community organization committed to working with low-income immigrants to overcome barriers to justice. The MICA Project utilizes legal services, organizing, advocacy, and education to promote the voice and human dignity of immigrant communities. The MICA Project is the largest nonprofit in St. Louis that provides representation in immigration matters. A majority of our clients are women and children who are escaping abuse or other persecution. Our Client Support Services Department ensures that all clients receive trauma informed care and access to community resources.
Sophisticated Goals: The MICA Project is uniquely positioned to intersect with both global and personal crises. From natural disasters to regime changes, world events influence both the source of the immigrants coming to the United States, and the wellbeing of our clients in the United States who might have family and friends in countries experiencing turmoil. Our clients in the United States often face their own challenges, from abusive relationships to eviction.
The MICA Project's ability to move swiftly and responsively in such situations is critical. Sometimes this means facilitating a woman's escape from an abusive household. Other times, it means coordinating evacuations from Kabul, Afghanistan. In August 2021, the MICA Project took on more than 100 cases from Afghanistan in less than a month. Of those, 30 individuals were evacuated, and the remainder are in the process of applying for permission to come to the United States.
But this crisis drastically challenged the MICA Project's capacity, adding an entire caseload's worth of work without any additional staff. At the same time, other crises continue to build - Haitians at the southern border, the uncertain future of the DACA program, and the ever changing status of the eviction moratorium. The MICA Project is seeking to increase its capacity in 2022 so that it can continue responding to these urgent needs, from the global to the personal.
Sophisticated Giving: Consider a donation the MICA Project. $50 provides an asylum-seeker with a consultation to learn about the court process. $100 secures a therapist for an unaccompanied minor child. $500 supports an Afghan humanitarian parole application. $5,000 saves the life of a family by covering the annual cost of their legal and social services. Your gift makes a tremendous difference!
1600 S. Kingshighway Ste. 2N Saint Louis, MO 63110 | 314.995.6995 | Mica-project.org
Facebook: mica.project.org | Instagram: themicaproject | Twitter: @MICAProjectSTL
