U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Richard Durbin, U.S. Representative Mike Quigley, and Illinois General Assembly members joined children’s legal service providers yesterday to raise the alarm about severe due process violations currently targeting unaccompanied immigrant children at the Chicago Immigration Court.
The press conference took place after an immigration judge, presiding via video at the Chicago Immigration Court, ordered the deportation of nine out of about 20 unaccompanied children who appeared in person for their removal hearings. During one of the final cases in the proceedings, after spending hours watching other children receive removal orders, one Indigenous child courageously asked the judge directly: “Why are you sending me back to Guatemala? What did I do?”
The children who received deportation orders had been deemed by a state court to have been abused, abandoned, or neglected in their home countries, and had applications pending for legal protection known as Special Immigrant Juvenile Status (SIJS). Congress created SIJS protections in 1990 for abandoned children whom the U.S. government determined could not safely return to their home countries.
“What I witnessed today illustrated President Trump and Stephen Miller’s ruthless agenda: they will go so far with their cruel immigration operation to target terrified children, forcing them to articulate their fears in front of a judge and explain why they must remain in this country,” said Senator Durbin in a statement. “As a father and grandfather, I cannot fathom the cruelty this Administration has inflicted on immigrants—including children across the country. I will continue to work with the National Immigrant Justice Center and Children’s Legal Center to end this administration’s disgusting attacks on children and relegate their actions to the dustbin of history where they belong.”
“Children are being seen in immigration court without lawyers, without parents, and facing a language barrier, and being asked to explain why they deserve to stay in this country,” said Representative Quigley. “These are kids young enough to be playing with toys while they wait for their turn in front of a judge. A judge who couldn’t even show up to the courtroom to look these children in the eye. As always, the cruelty is the point. Using children to instill fear and intimidate immigrant communities is beyond the pale. I’m going to keep working with the National Immigrant Justice Center, the Children’s Legal Center, and Senator Durbin to protect immigrant kids and families.”
The children who appeared in the Chicago court on Thursday were some of the hundreds nationally who have been scheduled for expedited hearings with little notice in recent months, as the Trump administration’s mass deportation agenda has increasingly targeted children. On July 31, the administration ended federal contracts that for years had ensured unaccompanied immigrant children had access to legal advice and representation. Since then, hundreds of more children have been scheduled for USCIS interviews, which advocates fear could result in coming weeks in even more children being put into deportation proceedings before a court that has been turned against them.
Illinois General Assembly members and legal services providers who attended Thursday’s court hearings provided the following statements:
Michael Hoyt, managing attorney, National Immigrant Justice Center:
“The Trump administration’s mass deportation agenda is escalating its attacks on children. The administration has weaponized a court system against them. It’s violated their due process. It’s put children with pending and approved protections into the deportation pipeline. Throughout 2026, the average time in custody at government shelters for immigrant youth has skyrocketed. At the same time, court hearings for these youth have dramatically accelerated. Our children in detention often have loved ones here in the community ready to receive them, yet this morning, even in cases where children are eligible or have been approved for protection under law, immigration courts entered removal orders against those children.”
Illinois Senator Cristina Castro:
“When I attended proceedings involving unaccompanied minors, I expected to see Ashley’s Law, which I helped pass, in action. Instead, I witnessed a process seemingly designed to speed cases through court, contrary to due process and the law’s protections. This only strengthens my commitment to safeguarding the rights of our most vulnerable.”
Laura Smith, executive director, Children’s Legal Center:
“Today, the Chicago Immigration Court ordered six of our children removed from the United States without due process. These children fled to the United States seeking safety and protection from the horrors that no children should have to endure. Instead of following the law, instead of adjudicating these children’s applications, instead of protecting abandoned children, the Department of Justice has directed immigration judges to order the removal of these children from the United States. The law is clear, and we will continue to fight to hold this administration accountable for their violations of the law.”
Danielle DeWinter, legal director, The Immigration Project:
“What we are seeing in court is kids being removed with approved relief, kids fearing whether or not they’ll be able to have their day in court or have representation because of cut funding. That is exactly what is happening not only in Illinois but nationwide. We need continued support, we need continued change, and we need continued funding to be able to help support these children to make sure that they have their day in court and can have due process.”
Illinois Representative Lilian Jimenez:
“While Illinois is finding ways to protect children, creating hope and pathways to legalization for unaccompanied minors with our work on Ashley’s Law, this administration is hell bent on traumatizing families and young people. It’s got to stop and we will continue to work with partners to protect children in Illinois.”