The Human Rights Clinic designs and implements innovative human rights projects to advance the struggle for justice on behalf of individuals and marginalized communities through advocacy, research, and policy development. The clinic employs an interdisciplinary model that leverages the intellectual capital of the university to provide innovative solutions to emerging human rights issues. The clinic develops collaborative partnerships with researchers, scholars, and human rights activists worldwide. Students are integral to all phases of the clinic’s work and acquire unparalleled experience generating knowledge and employing strategies to address the most urgent human rights issues of our day. The clinic works closely with the UC Berkeley Human Rights Center.
The clinic currently works in four focal areas: Promoting Human Rights Within the United States; Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights; Counter-Terrorism and Human Rights; and Accountability and Transitional Justice. Some examples of clinic students’ work includes: representing Colombian victims of paramilitary violence before U.S. courts; advocating for victims of crimes of mass atrocity and human rights violations in international tribunals around the globe; pursuing justice for victims of killings at the United States-Mexico border by U.S. Customs and Border Patrol agents; advocating for redress for victims of sexual abuse and exploitation by U.N. peacekeepers; and combating human trafficking in California.
In addition to work on human rights projects, clinic students participate in a seminar that provides a bridge between legal theory and practice. The clinical seminar is devoted to familiarizing students with substantive international law, providing rigorous legal training, and facilitating peer feedback and critique on cases and projects. It also offers students the opportunity for critical reflection on the lawyer’s role in human rights advocacy.
You can find more information about the requirements for participation in the clinic here.