MEDIA

“It is an honor to be able to continue the important work of integrating child welfare principles into immigration proceedings for children launched 18 years ago by Maria Woltjen. As an immigrant, as someone who sought refuge in the United States as a child, this work speaks to my soul; it is the work of my life. I feel privileged to be able to give back to other kids as they find their way to safety and provide the support they deserve in order to thrive in their full potential,” said Gladis Molina Alt about her new position.

On Thursday, February 18, 2021, Senator Bob Menendez (D-NJ) and Representative Linda Sanchez (D-CA) introduced the U.S. Citizenship Act of 2021 on behalf of President Joe Biden. Founder and Executive Director of the Young Center for Immigrant Children’s Rights Maria Woltjen released this statement.

Last week, a coalition of immigrant and children’s rights organizations filed an amicus brief with the Supreme Court in opposition to the Trump administration’s so-called Migrant Protection Protocols (MPP), also known as the Remain in Mexico policy, focusing on the harm to children caused by MPP.

“From family separation to the public charge rule to deportations during a global pandemic, the past four years have been a nightmare for immigrant children,” said Young Center Executive Director Maria Woltjen. “We hope that the new administration will not just right the wrongs of the past four years but begin to build an immigration system that treats children as children, recognizing their unique status.”

We are horrified and sickened, though not surprised, at the insurrection launched at our democracy yesterday. It was the fruit of a long, sustained campaign of lies and sabotage grounded in racism and hate. In response, we will continue our work of fighting for a democracy where the rights of all people—and especially all children—are honored, valued, and respected.

“The rule is an affront to both U.S. and international law which codifies the right of children to seek asylum and for decision-makers to act in children’s best interests. It also breaches U.S. treaty obligations, creating sweeping categories of mandatory denials and weakening due process protections for children.”

“The court’s decision today is a resounding victory for immigrant children and a relief to those of us who fight for their rights and safety.”

“Voting in record-breaking numbers, Americans have chosen a new administration. Together, we now face the hard work of ending policies that harm children and—as importantly—building a new system centered on the needs and rights of children,” Young Center Executive Director Maria Woltjen said in a statement.

Today, the Young Center for Immigrant Children’s Rights released “Reimagining Children’s Immigration Proceedings: A Roadmap for an Entirely New System Centered around Children.” With the support of the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, the report sets out to reimagine the ways in which the federal government welcomes children at the border and adjudicates their requests to remain permanently in the United States.

“Tuesday’s report about the 545 children who remain separated from their parents is one more reminder of this administration’s cruelty to children. The fight for immigrant children's rights and to end family separation is not over. Please join us in demanding that families belong together,” Young Center Executive Director Maria Woltjen said in a statement.

For more than four years, the administration has systematically and ruthlessly targeted children seeking protection at our borders while repeatedly violating laws enacted by bipartisan government to protect the most vulnerable migrants. Locking children in hotels so that they could be returned to their countries without a single question about their safety is just the latest example of the government’s callous disregard for children’s safety.

As we celebrate this win, we know that the fight is far from over. Just last night, DHS appealed the decision and is actually fighting to keep children hidden in hotels. DHS also continues to illegally turn away thousands of children and asylum-seekers at the border under the cover of COVID-19. We remain committed to fighting for rights and protection for all children and will continue to fight against the administration’s relentless attacks on children’s rights.

"ICE has the authority to release the families in its custody today, yet the agency continues to traumatize children and parents by keeping them in detention and threatening family separation. With every passing day, they are also unnecessarily at risk of further exposure to COVID. This cannot go on,” said Mary Miller Flowers of the Young Center for Immigrant Children’s Rights.

During the next ten days, ICE will pressure parents into giving up their children’s right to liberty or giving up their children’s right to family integrity. That is not a choice—it’s coercion. And during the next ten days, more families will become ill while parents agonize over the likelihood of forced separation from their children.

“Family Separation Is Not Over: How the Trump Administration Continues to Separate Children from Their Parents to Serve Its Political Ends,” details the work of Young Center Child Advocates to identify and reunify children forcibly separated from their parents and legal guardians before, during, and after the administration’s Zero Tolerance policy. The report shows that although Zero Tolerance was ended in the face of public backlash, family separation continues to the present day.