Our history
Our Founding (1987)
MIRA was founded in 1987, when the Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986 opened a path to residency for millions of immigrants and Massachusetts needed a member-driven coalition to fight for their rights and integration. As sister coalitions took shape in other states with large immigrant populations, MIRA joined a growing national network, giving us the combination of deep community connection and national reach that still defines our work today.
Meeting the Moment
For much of our first decade, MIRA was a small policy shop. The 1996 welfare reform law and the Illegal Immigrant Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act brought sweeping new restrictions on immigrants and demanded a stronger response: by 2000, MIRA had grown to a dozen staff with a real voice at the local, state, and federal levels. That growth has continued alongside Massachusetts' immigrant and refugee community, now nearly 1.2 million people, about half of whom arrived after 2000. Our staff has expanded in size, expertise, and diversity, our programs evolving to meet the moment, and our policy priorities examined and determined by our coalition members. We work in coalition with an ever growing network of advocacy partners, and each year, our Immigrants' Day at the State House brings as many as 1,500 people to Beacon Hill, the largest immigrant-led advocacy day in the Commonwealth.
A Legacy of Change
Over the decades, our advocacy has resulted in lasting and meaningful change. The Democracy on Hold report exposed the naturalization backlog and helped secure state funding for immigrant integration. Our work on the federal 245(i) provision reunited families, and state legislation we championed created interpreter requirements and safety-net programs, including protections for immigrant survivors of domestic violence. By our 20th anniversary in 2007, MIRA had become a leading voice in the national movement for comprehensive immigration reform alongside U.S. Senator Edward Kennedy, founded the Student Immigrant Movement, opened a sister office in New Hampshire, and helped shape the policy response to the 2007 New Bedford immigration raids.
In our third decade, we launched English for New Bostonians and English Works to expand English learning access, authored the Commonwealth's New Americans Agenda, the nation's most comprehensive study on immigrant integration and a model later adopted at the federal level, and co-founded the National Partnership for New Americans to give state coalitions like ours a stronger voice in Washington.
Legislative and Community Action
MIRA has advocated in coalition for key state legislative wins, including the Work and Family Mobility Act (2022), which gave all qualified drivers access to MA drivers licenses, ending a critical deportation pipeline; the Tuition Equity Act (2023), securing access to in-state tuition at public colleges and universities and to state financial aid for all Massachusetts high schools graduates, and the Physician Pathway Act (2024) a law under implementation that will provide a pathway to medical licensure for qualified internationally trained physicians.
And in 2026, MIRA’s years of advocacy for the Safe Communities Act bore fruit with the enactment of the PROTECT Act (An Act promoting rule of law, oversight, trust, and equal constitutional treatment), a comprehensive, ground-breaking new law to protect all our communities and community spaces from ICE overreach, including courthouses, schools, and healthcare centers.
Over the years MIRA has also administered multiple programs to respond to the most immediate needs of the communities we serve, guided by and in partnership with a state-wide coalition membership of more than 160 organizations.
These include our ongoing Citizenship Assistance Program, a 3-year Immigrant Assistance Services program; a legal helpline, and annual training programs for community members on immigration law, DOJ accreditation, and more. Budget advocacy is another key area of our work.
In 2025 MIRA secured first-ever public funding for low-income immigrants facing deportation, and have just entered our second year administering the resulting program, Massachusetts Access to Counsel Initiative (MACI), which matches these immigrants with qualified immigration attorneys. In parallel, we continue to advocate for the Immigrant Legal Defense Act, a bill introduced in 2025 that would enshrine the MACI program into law.
An Important Milestone
Today, on the cusp of our 40th anniversary, we push back against one of the most hostile environments for immigrants in our history. MIRA remains what it was built to be: a coalition where immigrant and refugee voices lead, and where members, community leaders, and allies come together to build a Commonwealth, and a nation, where everyone can thrive.
As we approach this milestone, MIRA is engaging in an exciting new initiative with historical archivists, who will work closely with MIRA staff, leadership, community members, former staff, Board members, and other partners to gather and organize stories, records, and historical materials from MIRA’s 40 years of work and impact. We look forward to sharing the results of this project when it reaches completion!