NYFA Source | Resources for Immigrant Artists

We’ve rounded up organizations who serve and support immigrant artists.

The New York Foundation for the Arts (NYFA) stands with all organizations and individuals working on behalf of immigrant communities. We oppose policies that negatively impact these communities, as their collective voices are vital to increasing understanding, building community, and reinforcing our humanity.

We are sharing resources for immigrant artists in response to the current administration’s policies, highlighting a selection of organizations who serve and support immigrants. Among them is the National Association of Latino Arts and Cultures (NALAC), which provides actionable ways for individuals to speak up and support those in need.

Immigrant Service Organizations

Below is a list of select organizations that provide services to immigrant communities in New York City, the Southwestern United States, and on a national level. For more artist resources, visit NYFA’s Immigrant Artist Program (IAP) Resource Directory, or NYFA Source for national Legal Resources and more information on organizations serving immigrants and refugees. 

• Artists from Abroad: Artists from Abroad provides arts-specific guidance on the immigration and taxation procedures needed to present international performing guest artists in the United States. 
• CAMBA: Based in Brooklyn, NY, CAMBA assists individuals from many communities throughout the five boroughs of New York City. More than half of CAMBA’s clients are immigrants and refugees. CAMBA provides assistance with housing, free legal counseling and representation, and more.
• Catholic Charities USA: Through their Immigration and Refugee Services, Catholic Charities provides a wide range of social and legal services, including housing and financial assistance, employment and training, language classes, adjustment of status, counseling, and other support.
• The Center for the Integration and Advancement of New Americans (CIANA): CIANA is a not-for-profit social services agency that serves new immigrants in New York City. Services include adult language training, free legal consultations, help with naturalization and citizenship processes, and generalized case management.
• CUNY Citizenship Now!: CUNY Citizenship Now! provides free and confidential immigration law services to help individuals and families on their path to U.S. citizenship.
• The Florence Immigration Project: The Florence Project provides free legal and social services to detained adults and unaccompanied children facing immigration removal proceedings in Arizona.
• Immigration Equality: Immigration Equality provides free legal services to lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and HIV-positive immigrants.
• Kids In Need of Defense (KIND): KIND defends the rights of unaccompanied immigrant or refugee children and ensures they can not appear in court without “high quality legal representation." 
• Las Americas Immigrant Advocacy Center: Based in El Paso, TX,  Las Americas provides legal representation to low-income immigrants and families seeking reunification.
• Mayor’s Office of Immigrant Affairs (MOIA): MOIA’s programs include ActionNYC, which offers free, safe immigration legal help; and a citizenship program, NYCitizenship, which helps New Yorkers get on the path to citizenship with no-cost, confidential application assistance.
• National Immigration Project: The National Immigration Project provides technical assistance and support to legal practitioners, immigrant communities, community-based organizations, and all advocates seeking and working to advance the rights of noncitizens.
• New New Yorkers Program at Queens Museum of Art and Queens Library: The New New Yorkers Program designs and implements educational classes to meet the needs of immigrant adult communities in Queens, NY.
• Puente Arizona: Puente Arizona, a migrant justice organization located in Phoenix, AZ, assists with Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) applications and documentation.
• RAICES (Refugee and Immigrant Center for Education and Legal Services): This Texas-based immigration nonprofit in Texas offers free and low-cost legal services to immigrant children and families.
• Tamizdat: Tamizdat’s “Artist Visa Assistance and Information Line” provides 24-hour pro bono legal assistance to the international performing arts community, including strategic counseling and crisis assistance.

To find more resources and opportunities, use NYFA Source, a free searchable database of 12,000+ awards, residencies, and services.

Click here for more information on the Immigrant Artist Mentoring Program. And don’t forget to sign up for the monthly Con Edison IAP Newsletter to receive opportunities and events as well as artist features directly to your inbox.

– Mirielle Clifford, Program Officer, Online Resources,

Image: Alice Gaskon (IAP ‘17), Dividing Lines; Borders