RMIAN celebrates reinstatement of legal services for immigrant children!
RMIAN celebrates the rescinding of last Tuesday's stop work order for legal services funded through the Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR) Unaccompanied Children’s Program. With this stop work order, the federal government gravely imperiled the ongoing representation of children in immigration proceedings.
“RMIAN is thrilled to see this stop work order rescinded. RMIAN represents hundreds of unaccompanied children--some as young as two-years-old--who would otherwise be forced to navigate the complicated immigration legal system alone. RMIAN's clients include children who have been subjected to child abuse and neglect, trafficking and sexual abuse who fled to the U.S. for safety and protection. While the Trump administration attempted to halt funding for this program, we will always be committed to protecting and serving our child clients, no matter what,” says Ashley Harrington, RMIAN Children’s Program Managing Attorney.
This order affected over 90 legal service providers across the U.S., including RMIAN, which together represent over 26,000 unaccompanied immigrant children in immigration court proceedings. About 160 children in Colorado were impacted by this order, where the federal government halted funding for their legal representation with the stroke of a pen.
Gina Rangel, RMIAN Unaccompanied Children’s Program Coordinator and Paralegal says, “RMIAN stands in solidarity with the unaccompanied children across the country and will continue to fight for their access to free legal representation.”
“Capriciously putting stop-work orders on life-saving immigration legal services for children is contrary to our values as a society that believes in the rule of law and equal access to justice. These actions put lives at risk, and further destabilize families and communities. We are grateful for the immense outpouring of support from individuals across Colorado and the United States who demanded that this essential legal work protecting children continue,” says Mekela Goehring, Executive Director, RMIAN.