Tomorrow, the Supreme Court will hear arguments in a group of cases that challenge the Trump administration’s decision to end the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program. In highly anticipated oral arguments, the Court will consider whether it has the ability to review that decision and if so, whether the decision to end DACA and put millions of youth and young adults in jeopardy of deportation, was lawful.
Read More“The Young Center is thrilled to partner with UNICEF USA on this critical work. Collaborations like this are essential, especially now, when children face near constant obstacles.” Young Center Executive Director Maria Woltjen said about the support from UNICEF USA.
Read More“We’re thrilled to see swift and consistent decisions from multiple courts, each indicating that the rule is likely to be found unlawful,” said Young Center’s Policy Director Jennifer Nagda.
Read MorePlease join our Annual Houston Benefit, Champions for Immigrant Children, featuring Young Center Founder and Executive Director Maria Woltjen and Immigration Reporter at the Houston Chronicle Lomi Kriel on October 30th, 2019 to support our work with unaccompanied and separated immigrant children.
Read MoreDolores, * a 6-year-old girl from Guatemala, and her mother fled Central America after facing domestic violence. While they were crossing the border, Dolores’s mother was injured. She was told by border officials that they would watch over Dolores while she received medical attention. Instead, Dolores was transferred more than 2,500 miles away to a government shelter in New York.
Read MoreThere’s been no letup in the administration’s attacks on immigrant children and families. Children—whether they arrive at our border alone or with family—continue to face new threats intended to deny them the ability to ask for protection or to have a fair chance when they do. Here’s what’s happening.
Read MoreI am the grandchild of immigrants. My paternal grandfather fled Vienna after Adolf Hitler took power in next-door Germany and was lucky enough to be able to come to the United States and start a new life. I know, in the marrow of my bones, that it is only the sheerest accident of history that it is other people’s children, and not my own, wailing for their missing parents in places of horror like Clint.
Read MoreGuided by principles of child welfare and family unity, the Flores Settlement Agreement sets minimum standards for the detention, release, and treatment of immigrant children. The administration’s new regulations would eliminate the central protections guaranteed under Flores and would allow the indefinite detention of children.
Read More“Over the last few years, our perspective has grown and we’ve realized we have to do everything possible to foster more compassion and empathy in this world. History’s being written right now. We’re grateful to give back to organizations who give voice to so many.”
Read MoreFrom Young Center Executive Director Maria Woltjen: If you do nothing else today, I hope you’ll read this story by my colleague, my treasured friend, Jajah Wu. It will make you cry. It will make you angry. It will make you thankful there are people like Jajah fighting for immigrant kids.
Read MoreThe rule, also known as “Asylum Ban 2.0,” prohibits some of the most vulnerable families and children from seeking asylum.
Read MoreIf any children do face the possibility of prolonged separation, the Young Center will be there to help them. We are collaborating with local actors and have offered to provide technical assistance to attorneys and child welfare workers navigating the complex intersection of immigration and child welfare systems. If any children do face the possibility of prolonged separation, the Young Center will be there to help them.
Read MoreRecent data establishes that that CBP’s screening returns nearly every Mexican child, despite well-known risks of trafficking and persecution. We therefore recommend that policy makers reject any proposal that would subject all unaccompanied children to the same process as children from Mexico.
Read MoreSenator Lindsey Graham introduced the Secure and Protect Act of 2019. The bill, however, does anything but secure and protect. Rather, it guts the asylum system and undermines the safety and well-being of vulnerable children and families who are seeking protection in the United States.
Read MoreThe Young Center for Immigrant Children’s Rights joined more than 200 organizations and individuals with expertise in migration, refugee law and human rights in signing a letter to to the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights to address grave human rights violations impacting migrants in Mexico and the United States, including asylum seekers, children and families.
Read MoreOn Friday, July 12, 2019, Jennifer Nagda, Policy Director at the Young Center for Immigrant Children’s Rights, testified at House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform’s hearing on family separation.
Read MoreYesterday, the Young Center for Immigrant Children’s Rights joined thousands of organizations and individuals in opposing a new government regulation that targets immigrant families and could force children into homelessness.
Read MoreBrothers Andy and Junior were separated at the United States border in October 2018. Seven-year-old Andy was transferred to a facility in New York and Junior, 21, was placed in an adult detention facility in Texas. The siblings were devastated, especially because Junior had been Andy’s primary caregiver in Honduras.
Read More“We are deeply disappointed that Congress could not pass a clean bill that was focused solely on the needs of vulnerable children,” said Jennifer Nagda, Policy Director at the Young Center for Immigrant Children’s Rights. “We hope that the public will hold DHS and Congress accountable for making sure these funds are actually used to protect immigrant children.
Read MoreCoverage of the patently dangerous conditions for children in Customs and Border Protection (CBP) custody has brought renewed attention to an immigration system designed for adults, where children are seen as threats—not as infants, preschoolers, grade-schoolers or teens in need of protection. Here are some concrete actions you can take to help.
Read More
