The federal government’s contract to pay for legal services for unaccompanied minors lapsed last week, leaving tens of thousands of immigrant children at risk of moving through the immigration system with no legal support.
In Arizona, one of the primary providers of legal representation for children is the Tucson-based Florence Project, which says they will continue to represent children while they have money to do so.
“In Arizona we are taking cases and assessing on a case by case basis,” said Roxana Avila-Cimpeanu, deputy director of the Florence Project at a news conference Wednesday, Aug. 5th. The organization has 300 pending asylum cases in Arizona, which includes children who are both currently detained and not detained.
“We will continue to do that for as long as we have the resources.”
The law firm set to receive the $150 million federal contract to represent unaccompanied migrant children will be the Burke Law Group, a Houston-based law firm whose staff has written opinion pieces in favor of Trump policies and which does not have immigration expertise, according to media reports.
That’s part of a wave of changes that are impacting immigrant youth in the U.S.
Across the country, attorneys said at Wednesday’s press conference, the ramp up in immigration enforcement has led to children being separated from their families and ending up in government custody where advocates allege they are unfairly rushed through deportation proceedings even when they may have the right to stay.
“This is the worst time we have ever seen with regards to how our government is treating children,” said Avila-Cimpeanu.
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