Project ANAR

What Project ANAR does

Project ANAR (Afghan Network for Advocacy and Resources) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit immigration justice organization founded in August 2021 in the immediate aftermath of the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan, and fiscally sponsored by Pangea Legal Services in San Francisco. It delivers free immigration legal services, community education, and advocacy primarily to Afghan and BAMEMSA (Black, African, Middle Eastern, South Asian, and Muslim) communities, operating through a large-scale pro se model that empowers community members to file their own applications, supplemented by direct representation in limited matters. The portfolio of services includes humanitarian parole and family reunification assistance, a Defensive Asylum Workshop Series (identified as the first of its kind for Afghans), multilingual Know Your Rights resources in English, Dari, and Pashto, and a Live Rapid Response Hub for time-sensitive policy changes. The organization is headquartered at 391 Sutter St., Suite 500, San Francisco, with operational bases in the SF Bay Area and Northern Virginia/DMV region, and serves clients transnationally including in Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Turkey. Since founding, ANAR has directly assisted over 9,000 community members, facilitated 5,463 humanitarian parole and family reunification placements, filed 2,213 applications, and reached 43,000–50,000+ users with online resources.

Project ANAR runs on a community-powered go-to-market motion that combines legal expertise with grassroots organizing, event-driven engagement (workshops, resource fairs, picnics, iftars), and a volunteer network of 1,000+ individuals. Distribution occurs through regional direct services (Bay Area and Northern Virginia), a self-serve website with a request-assistance form and multilingual resource library, and a referral/reseller channel connecting pro bono attorneys with Afghan clients. The business model is non-commercial: all services to community members are free of charge, with revenue derived from foundation grants (Y&H Soda Foundation, Grove Foundation, San Francisco Foundation, California Endowment, NEO Philanthropies/Four Freedoms Fund, Common Counsel Foundation, and others), government funding (California Department of Social Services, California Dignity for Families Fund), grassroots donations, and platform partners (GoFundMe Welcome Fund). Marketing and outreach are executed primarily through organic social channels (Instagram, X/Twitter), email newsletters, and earned media coverage in Politico, PBS, CBS News, Al Jazeera, LAist, and the Washington Examiner. There is no proprietary technology stack — the underlying infrastructure consists of a content library, volunteer coordination systems, and a WordPress-based website (designed by Design Action Collective).

Name

Project ANAR

Legal name

Project ANAR (Afghan Network for Advocacy and Resources)

Website

https://projectanar.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2021

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Project ANAR is a 501(c)(3) grassroots immigration justice organization founded in 2021 that provides free legal services, community education, and advocacy to Afghan and BAMEMSA communities in the U.S., operating primarily in the SF Bay Area and Northern Virginia.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Immigration Legal Services

NAICS

Emergency and Other Relief Services (624230), Human Rights Organizations (813311)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300)

akta.pro primary industry

Refugee & Immigrant Support Services (BPAGAEAI)

akta.pro secondary industries

Migrant & Refugee Legal Aid and Documentation Services (BPADAHAE), Asylum & Refugee Status Determination (RSD) Support (BPADAHAB), Refugee, IDP & Migration Humanitarian Assistance (BPAGAAAH), Migration, Refugees & Forced Displacement Assistance (BPADABAL)

Keywords

• Immigration legal services
• Humanitarian parole assistance
• Asylum application support
• Family reunification services
• Immigration advocacy campaigns

Headquarters

HQ city

San Francisco

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Donations and Grants: Project ANAR is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization fiscally sponsored by Pangea Legal Services. Revenue comes from donations, grants from foundations, and government support. Raised over $200,000 in filing fees in 2021 that were distributed directly to applicants.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Project ANAR (Afghan Network for Advocacy and Resources) provides free immigration legal assistance to Afghan and BAMEMSA communities, including humanitarian parole applications, asylum support, family reunification services, and detention defense. Services are delivered primarily through a large-scale pro se model combined with technical assistance and a volunteer attorney network, supported by multilingual Know Your Rights resources in English, Dari, and Pashto.

Product overview

Project ANAR (Afghan Network for Advocacy and Resources) is a grassroots immigration justice organization offering a portfolio of legal services and advocacy programs. The core offering is free immigration legal assistance for Afghan and BAMEMSA communities, including humanitarian parole assistance, asylum application support through workshop series and pro se resources, family reunification services, and Know Your Rights education in multiple languages. These services are delivered alongside advocacy campaigns including the Afghan Adjustment Act advocacy, Travel Ban Action Hub, and Hold Joshua Mast Accountable campaign. The organization operates primarily through a large-scale pro se model, volunteer network, and community-led approach, supported by a resource library with multilingual materials.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Immigration Legal Services Free immigration legal assistance for Afghan and BAMEMSA communities, including community education resources, technical assistance, and limited direct assistance primarily through a large-scale pro se model focused on empowering immigrant and refugee community members.
• Humanitarian Parole Assistance Assistance with Afghan Humanitarian Parole applications, including application checklists, FAQs, practice advisories, and guidance on navigating USCIS processes for individuals seeking entry to the United States on urgent humanitarian grounds.
• Family Reunification Services
• Defensive Asylum Workshop Series

Named customers3 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Twelve partnerships are on record, tiered core and major.

• Pangea Legal ServicescoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFiscal sponsor - a 501(c)(3) immigrant defense organization based in San Francisco, California. Project ANAR is housed at Pangea Legal Services. ANAR's model is inspired by Pangea Legal Services' empowerment-focused pro se removal defense workshop series.
• Afghan American Community OrganizationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFounding partner organization in the coalition
• Afghan Diaspora for Equality & ProgresscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFounding partner organization in the coalition
• Berkeley Law for Afghanistan ProjectcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFounding partner organization - law school clinic providing legal support
• Centro Legal de la RazacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFounding partner organization - Bay Area legal services provider
• Catholic Legal Immigration Network, Inc. (CLINIC)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFounding partner - national immigration legal network
• Innovation Law LabscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFounding partner organization
• Oasis Legal ServicescoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFounding partner organization
• PARS Equality CentercoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFounding partner organization - provides additional resources for Afghan support
• Southeast Asian Resource Action CentercoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFounding partner organization
• CAIR San Francisco Bay AreamajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnered with ANAR on pilot defensive asylum workshop
• Human Rights FirstmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner for two defensive asylum workshops on the East Coast; provides legal assistance referrals

Scale indicators15 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Centro Legal de la Raza: Named founding coalition partner of ANAR; Bay Area-based legal services nonprofit serving immigrant communities with comparable free immigration legal assistance and community organizing model. Operates in the same geographic market with overlapping BAMEMSA clientele.
• Human Rights First: National human rights and refugee organization that partners with ANAR to run defensive asylum workshops on the East Coast. Directly comparable in asylum representation and refugee protection work for BAMEMSA and other asylum-seeking populations.
• Pangea Legal Services: Fiscal sponsor and parent organization of Project ANAR; Bay Area-based immigrant defense 501(c)(3) that developed the original empowerment-focused pro se removal defense workshop series that ANAR's model is explicitly built on. Direct organizational and operational overlap.
• Innovation Law Lab: Named founding coalition partner of ANAR; Portland-based immigration legal services and advocacy nonprofit with a similar grassroots, pro se and community empowerment model focused on asylum seekers. Directly comparable in mission, model, and BAMEMSA-adjacent constituency.
• PARS Equality Center: Named founding coalition partner of ANAR; provides social and legal services to Afghan and Iranian immigrant and refugee communities in the Bay Area. Operates the same geographic footprint and serves overlapping BAMEMSA populations with comparable immigration and resettlement services.
• International Refugee Assistance Project (IRAP): National nonprofit providing legal representation and advocacy for refugees and displaced people; co-filed the Afghan Humanitarian Parole FOIA lawsuit with ANAR. Closely comparable in refugee legal services and policy advocacy targeting Afghan and BAMEMSA populations.
• Oasis Legal Services: Named founding coalition partner of ANAR; Salt Lake City-based nonprofit providing free immigration legal services with similar community-led BAMEMSA focus. Directly comparable in target population and pro bono delivery model.

Broad incumbents

• Catholic Legal Immigration Network (CLINIC): National immigration legal services network and one of ANAR's named founding coalition partners. Operates a much larger affiliated attorney network across the U.S. with broader immigration programming, but shares ANAR's immigration legal aid mission and trains many of the same volunteer attorneys.
• American Immigration Council: National immigration policy and litigation organization that co-filed the Afghan Humanitarian Parole FOIA lawsuit with ANAR. Operates at significantly larger scale across all immigration categories, but directly comparable in immigration litigation and policy advocacy.

Emerging players

• CAIR (Council on American-Islamic Relations): National Muslim civil rights and advocacy organization whose San Francisco Bay Area chapter partnered with ANAR on a pilot defensive asylum workshop. Comparable in serving Muslim-American communities and overlapping BAMEMSA constituency, though CAIR's mandate is broader civil rights rather than immigration-specific legal services.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/project_anar
• YouTubeyoutube.com/@projectanar
• Facebookfacebook.com/projectanar
• Instagraminstagram.com/projectanar
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/project-anar

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Project ANAR