Click to read LULAC's new report on the impact of H.R. 1 on Immigrants and Children of Immigrants Who are U.S. Citizens. Click Here

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Legal Defense Fund

Fighting for Latino Civil Rights since 1929

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Leading the Fight for Latino Civil Rights

For nearly a century, the League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC) has fought for the civil rights of Latinos and underserved communities, lighting the way for justice in education, voting, and beyond. Yet, the battle is not over—the road ahead remains steep and uncertain. Your support is the spark we need to continue this critical fight.

Our civil rights are under attack. We see our communities facing growing challenges—from threats to voting rights to systemic barriers in education and healthcare. These attacks are not just against us, but against the very fabric of justice and equality that we’ve fought so hard to build. Now, more than ever, we must unite and defend our rights, ensuring that our voices are heard and our futures are secured.

What We Do

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Civil Rights and Immigration

LULAC's focus on litigation is on protecting immigrant civil rights and families. LULAC was the first to challenge a federal executive order that attempted to deny citizenship to U.S.-born children of immigrants, winning multiple court injunctions that safeguarded the Constitution’s guarantee of birthright citizenship. LULAC also helped halt an unlawful deportation order targeting refugees, ensuring due process and human dignity were upheld for those seeking asylum.

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Litigation

LULAC’s courtroom advocacy dates back to the 1930s when it helped launch the first class-action lawsuit against segregated “Mexican schools” in Texas. In the 1940s, LULAC attorneys led landmark desegregation cases such as Mendez v. Westminster (1946), which ended a century of school segregation against Mexican-American children in California, and Delgado v. Bastrop ISD (1948), which forced Texas to shut down its dual school system for Latino students. 

LULAC’s legal battles have continued recent decades, breaking new ground in expanding civil rights and opportunity for Latino communities. In the late 20th century, LULAC fought to equalize educational resources: its class-action suit LULAC v. Clements challenged Texas’s neglect of predominantly Latino regions, leading to the South Texas Border Initiative and the creation of nine new public universities and colleges in underserved areas.

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Legal Fellows Program

The LULAC Legal Defense Fund is spearheading the creation of a new Legal Fellows Program that will enlist recent law graduates and practicing attorneys as a nationwide network of advocates supporting LULAC councils and members. These Legal Fellows will provide hands-on legal support on the front lines of immigration assistance, civil rights litigation, and voting rights protection in communities across the country. This initiative comes at a critical moment: Latino families are facing an unprecedented wave of policy changes and legal challenges targeting them – from a 77% surge in anti-immigrant state laws introduced in the past year to ongoing voter suppression tactics that purge Latino voters from registration rolls and dilute their voices at the ballot box.

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Why It Matters

In a time of rising challenges, supporting the LULAC Legal Defense Fund is more than a charitable act – it is an imperative and an investment in the future of our democracy. Latino communities today face unprecedented threats that strike at the very heart of American values. Attacks on birthright citizenship, attempts to erode due process, and deliberate voter suppression efforts are not isolated issues; together, they form a broad assault on the principles of equality and justice that define who we are as a nation. We must confront these challenges with resolve, not only for the Latino community but for the integrity of our democracy itself.