Frank C. Newman International Human Rights Law Clinic
Become a leader in human rights advocacy. At the Frank C. Newman International Human Rights Law Clinic, you'll work alongside inspiring human rights defenders in exile to create real change.
Forced displacement often strips defenders of their agency, but as a Clinic student, you’ll help amplify their voices, leverage their expertise, and support their fight for justice on the global stage.
You’ll collaborate directly with human rights defenders and their communities to design and implement advocacy plans that make a difference. Through this work, you’ll develop vital skills for your career, including:
- Interviewing clients, experts, and witnesses.
- Strategic planning, client counseling, and trauma-centered lawyering.
- Legal research, writing, and advocacy in local and international forums.
- Building campaigns, organizing, and using media to raise awareness.
- Fact investigation, report writing, and lobbying for systemic change.
- Reflecting on ethical concerns, identity, and positionality in global human rights work.
Connect Theory with Practice
The Clinic’s seminar bridges theory with real-world experience. You’ll build lawyering skills while engaging in meaningful reflection on your role within the global human rights movement. For students ready to go deeper, opportunities for domestic and international travel allow you to carry out the strategic plans you co-develop with clients, creating change in communities around the world.
Engage in Advocacy
Amplify the voices of displaced populations. Bridge the gap between lived experiences and global-policy making.
USF Law Clinic Interviews Refugees in Kenya
Photo Credit: Thabit Radjabu
In partnership with refugee-led organizations, Clinic students documented the ways restrictions on refugee movement in Kenya undermine access to education, health care, livelihoods, and freedom of expression. Released on World Refugee Day 2026, the report contains recommendations for UNHCR, the Kenyan Department of Refugee Services, and other stakeholders.
USF Law Clinic Shares Plight of Hazara Women
Faculty and students interviewed Hazara women who served in Afghanistan’s security forces and have been targeted by the Taliban since they returned to power in 2021. First shared at the Commission on the Status of Women in March 2025 and then formally published in August 2025 to coincide with the fourth anniversary of the Taliban takeover, the report outlines steps that must be taken to ensure protection for these women.
Discover Our Impact
Faculty
Professor Lindsay M. Harris
Professor Lindsay M. Harris is a professor of law and director of the Frank C. Newman International Human Rights Clinic. Before joining USF Law, Professor Harris served as Associate Dean of Clinical and Experiential Programs at the University of the District of Columbia David A. Clarke School of Law where she directed the Immigration and Human Rights Clinic. Professor Harris was the recipient of the AILA 2020 Elmer Fried Excellence in Teaching Award. Professor Harris has visited as Acting Director of the International Human Rights Law Clinic at American University and previously taught at Georgetown Law and George Mason.