Join our network of advocates defending the rights of all survivors of domestic violence, sexual assault, trafficking, and gender-based abuses for access to life-saving protections.

ais STATEMENT: New conditions on funding for crime victims endanger immigrant survivors

A coalition of over 20 Attorneys General sued the Trump administration in an effort to block the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) from conditioning federal funding for crime victims on states’ cooperation with federal immigration enforcement. 

“These new grant conditions on Victims of Crime Act (VOCA) funding would compound an existing climate of fear – one that  silences victims and emboldens abusers,” said Cecelia Friedman Levin, AIS Advocacy Coordinator.

According to our recent national survey, 76% of advocates serving immigrant survivors of domestic violence, sexual assault, and human trafficking reported that their clients are hesitant to contact the police, while over 70% shared concerns about going to court.”

ais STATEMENT: Fear and Silence - AIS Denounces Passage of Reconciliation Bill as Threat to Survivor Safety

Congress just passed the harmful reconciliation package which ramps up extreme funding levels for immigration enforcement, establishes new financial penalties on humanitarian immigration protections, and cuts off critical safety net programs for asylees, refugees, as well as survivors of domestic violence and human trafficking.

By pouring billions of dollars to immigration detention – including the detention of families – and imposing unprecedented fees on women, children, and families seeking humanitarian protection, while cutting off access to health care for survivors, Congress has inflicted deep and lasting harm – choosing an agenda of cruelty over an agenda of safety and justice and for all.

See statements by leadership at the AIS Co-Chair organizations.

ais SURVEY: Fear and Silence - 2025 Insights from Advocates for Immigrant Survivors

On June 18, 2025, AIS released the results of a nationwide survey of advocates and attorneys assessing how changes to federal immigration policies are impacting the help seeking behaviors of immigrant survivors, including their willingness to engage with law enforcement when they are a victim of a crime. What we heard was clear and alarming: immigrant survivors are more afraid than ever to seek help from the police or the courts. 

One of the stark findings reveals that 76 percent of advocates reported that immigrant survivors have concerns about contacting the police to report domestic violence and sexual assault. “Most of the immigrant survivors that I currently work with are fearful to leave their homes, drive, or be in public spaces as these are all ways that they could be picked up by ICE,” said one advocate in the survey. 

ais STATEMENT: What it really means to keep America safe

This administration’s call for increased militarization of law enforcement and retribution against cities and states with sanctuary policies comes on the heels of increased threats to services and protections for survivors of domestic and gender-based violence, putting immigrant survivors and their families at risk of falling through the cracks.

Immigrant survivors know that this is not what safety looks like. Safety means being protected from harm and is rooted in ensuring survivors have the support they need. 

Safety is not accomplished by attacking sanctuary jurisdictions that choose to build community trust with local law enforcement or by ramping up increasingly aggressive and militarized policing methods.

Safety means access for all, because when one survivor fears asking for help, all communities become less safe.