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4-year-old migrant girl, other kids go to court in NYC with no lawyer: 'The cruelty is apparent'

gothamist.com

4-year-old migrant girl, other kids go to court in NYC with no lawyer: 'The cruelty is apparent'

Immigrant advocates and lawyers say an increasing number of migrant children are making immigration court appearances without the assistance of attorneys, which they say will lead to more children getting deported.

The Trump administration on March 21 terminated part of a $200 million contract that funds attorneys and other legal services for unaccompanied children, who arrived in the United States without parents or legal guardians.

The now-terminated contract paid for attorneys to represent 26,000 children across the country and “friend of the court” programs for children, which provide attorneys in court to help pro se respondents navigate the court process.

Kraft said that before the contract was terminated, she saw 30% to 40% of children in a given docket without lawyers. Now, she said, the number has increased to 50% to 60%.

Last fiscal year, 98,356 unaccompanied children entered the country

He adjusted his language to be kid-friendly, explaining in detail what a “right” is and what “asylum” is, with a gentle lilt. Immigration judges are required to take extra time to explain the proceedings in a "child-friendly" way, per Department of Justice directives.

Ul-Haq asked each of the older children if they wanted more time to find attorneys. They all responded yes. For the younger children, ul-Haq automatically gave them extra time.

“You and your sister were very good girls today,” he told the 8-year-old girl and her 4-year-old sister in the tie-dye shirt.

He asked the 7-year-old boy who had been spinning a windmill, “What’s that on your shirt?” A pizza, the boy said.

Then, ul-Haq asked if any of the children had a first language other than Spanish.

The 4-year-old girl in the tie-dye shirt raised her hand, dangling her pink plushy above her head. It wasn’t clear – was she responding to the question, or just playing with her toy?

A woman off-screen said, “I’m her case manager,” referring to herself as a social worker in charge of the child. “She speaks Spanish.”

18 comments

  • I remember catching some shit when I saw Fox on a hotel tv. It was claiming that 2 year old migrants were crossing the border. My first thought was that it was manufacturing consent. I hate that I was right.

  • “It’s my job to figure out if you have to leave,” ul-Haq continued. “It’s also my job to figure out if you should stay.”

    I think the answer is clear, and any consideration of the first should disqualify you from the chair.

    The Trump administration on March 21 terminated part of a $200 million contract that funds attorneys and other legal services for unaccompanied children, who arrived in the United States without parents or legal guardians. While that action is being challenged in court, immigrant advocates say the impact is already being felt, as lawyer groups pull back on services – leaving some children on their own.

    It's not about justice. It's about money. This is obvious to us, but it needs to be said. The fact that these groups are not providing pro bono work for these children shows you just how much they actually care about them.

    The Door, Empire Justice Center, ICARE and several other legal groups sent a letter to Gov. Kathy Hochul on April 4, calling on her to help replace the $18 million in funding provided by the now-terminated federal contract. A spokesperson for Hochul didn't immediately respond to a request for comment.

    Hochul constantly failing to meet the moment, not that she ever really cared to do so.

    An absolutely disgusting situation that no child should ever have to endure.

    • The fact that these groups are not providing pro bono work for these children shows you just how much they actually care about them.

      I get where you're coming from but not every firm or legal group will have the resources to do pro bono work like this en masse. These cases can get incredibly expensive and drag out for years, not to mention how many kids there are who need these services. If a group doesn't have funding for this, they very likely won't have the time nor the money to represent many kids for free so they will have to pull back. You're asking for teams and teams of people to work without pay for years, which is unrealistic. That's why the cutting of funding for these programs is significant, because the money obviously exists but it's not going to those groups so that all of these children do find representation.

      • I'll coincide to these points. It really speaks to the alienation of it all. If I were to follow the train of thought all the way down, it's just fucking bleak. These kids should not have to be in court, but they are, since they are, they should have representation, which they did, but not because they are afforded the same rights as a citizen like me who will be provided representation by the state if I can't afford my own but because they are being provided a service that the state pays for through programs, until the funding for that representation is removed by the state, pro bono work is done mostly by lawyers who are cutting their teeth, the unpaid interns of the legal system, not from some altruistic place, any experienced lawyer (like any experienced laborer) has the same basic needs as anyone else, food, shelter, medical care, and any institution without money will lay off workers that can't be paid, and any labor who can't be paid won't labor, even if that labor is one of justice for innocent children stranded in another country without their parents. There is no network of lawyers pooling resources to defend these children today while also maintaining themselves to labor the next day. Instead, they get to watch these kids be flung into a wood chipper. At what point, in the face of endless norms breaking, countless instances of "making up the rules", do people as close to this kind of suffering as these lawyers decide that it's time to make our own fucking rules for once?

18 comments