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NIJC has a new Chicago address at 111 W. Jackson Blvd, Suite 800, Chicago, IL 60604 and a new email domain at @immigrantjustice.org.

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Contact NIJC Communications Director Tara Tidwell Cullen at (312) 833-2967 or by email.

Statement of Mary Meg McCarthy, Executive Director, Heartland Alliance’s National Immigrant Justice Center

The ongoing influx of unaccompanied immigrant children from Central America to the United States is a refugee crisis and a humanitarian emergency in which the need for legal services continues to escalate. Every child apprehended by Customs and Border Protection is placed in removal proceedings, where the law does not distinguish between children and adults facing deportation. Without legal counsel, these vulnerable children must navigate the legal system alone, regardless of age. I, along with an attorney from Kids In Need of Defense (KIND), recently visited Lackland Air Force Base (San Antonio, Texas), where 1,200 immigrant children are detained. And while the government provides shelter and food, it must also provide legal services, including legal orientation, screening, and post-release referrals conducted by experienced lawyers. Until a sustainable solution is implemented, a local legal service organization is operating beyond capacity to respond to this emergency.

A majority of children shuffled through the emergency shelter qualify for legal protection, but cannot access it without legal counsel. Without a sound legal infrastructure to protect the rights of these children the situation will only get worse.

A longtime NIJC pro bono attorney visited Lackland with me. He is one of many private attorneys who volunteers time and resources to help protect these children. The legal community will mobilize to respond to the urgent need for services for unaccompanied children, but the government must provide support and access to the children for these contributions to be realized.

To ensure the legal rights of unaccompanied immigrant children, our government must immediately:

1. Establish a national legal service program to provide immigrant children with information about their legal rights and conduct individual legal assessments;
2. Create a national hotline to connect unaccompanied immigrant children to legal counsel after their release from the shelters;
3. Provide appointed counsel and train pro bono attorneys to represent children in court; and
4. Increase funding to hire and train immigration judges so they understand the issues facing children.