- Policy Briefs
Building an Efficient and Humane Processing of Unaccompanied Children
Published
The American Immigration Council appeared before the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Homeland Security to address the treatment of unaccompanied children at the border and provide recommendation to ensure the creation of a unified humanitarian approach for all groups.
The recommendations included:
- Building a new border infrastructure that allows for the efficient and humane processing of children that is flexible enough to address extraordinary migration events.
- Stop blocking access to asylum at ports of entry through metering, which drives migrants, including unaccompanied children, into the hands of the cartels.
- Embed ORR staff into every step of the border processing system, allowing them to begin the sponsorship process for unaccompanied children immediately after apprehension and process non-parental relatives such as grandparents as sponsors immediately, avoiding family separations.
- Expand access to licensed child welfare workers at the border.
- Ensure that no child goes through the immigration court process without a lawyer.
Help us fight for immigration justice!
The research is clear – immigrants are more likely to win their cases with a lawyer by their side. But very few can get attorneys.
Introducing the Immigration Justice Campaign Access Fund.
Your support sends attorneys, provides interpreters, and delivers justice.
Immigration Justice Campaign is an initiative of American Immigration Council and American Immigration Lawyers Association. The mission is to increase free legal services for immigrants navigating our complicated immigration system and leverage the voices and experiences of those most directly impacted by our country’s immigration policies to inform legal and advocacy strategies. We bring together a broad network of volunteers who provide legal assistance and advocate for due process for immigrants with a humane approach that includes universal legal representation and other community-based support for individuals during their immigration cases.