Advancing immigrant and refugee rights: Introduction to the special issue

Area of Science:

• Community Psychology
• Social Justice
• Human Rights

Background:

• Contemporary migration is characterized by escalating global displacement, structural violence, and political backlash.
• There is an urgent need for community psychology to engage with these realities through praxis that centers migrant voices.
• Exclusionary systems, human rights protection, social justice, and migrant well-being are critical areas for intervention.

Discussion:

• Culturally grounded, participatory, and community-based approaches affirm migrant dignity and foster resilience.
• Empirical studies across diverse contexts explore the psychosocial impacts of hostile immigration policies.
• Culturally responsive interventions and migrant-led advocacy hold transformative potential.

Key Insights:

• The special issue addresses themes of empowerment, social justice, equity, and liberation for immigrants and refugees.
• Community psychology must move beyond neutrality to actively advance migrant justice.
• Co-creating systems rooted in dignity, inclusion, and collective thriving is essential.

Outlook:

• This issue provides a roadmap for researchers, practitioners, and policymakers in advancing migrant rights.
• Continued research and practice are needed to challenge exclusionary systems and promote well-being.
• A collective and urgent engagement is called for to achieve migrant justice.