Seven-year-old Chanel and her sister Adriana, age 10, both unaccompanied minors traveling alone from Honduras, sit among other asylum-seeking children as they await to be transported to a U.S. border patrol processing facility after crossing the Rio Grande river into the United States from Mexico in La Joya, Texas, on May 6, 2021. Adrees Latif / Reuters file
“Migrant children are often left to represent themselves. Kids as young as 5 years old have signed documents waiving their rights.” ~ Newsnation
Last year, more than 80,000 minors were called to appear in immigration court. Over 40% were under age 4.
A bipartisan group of lawmakers in both the Senate and the House have introduced the Immigration Court Efficiency and Children’s Court Act of 2023, which would:
- Establish a children’s court within the Justice Department’s Executive Office of Immigration Review, maintaining a special docket for migrant children.
- Train judges and a special cohort of attorneys to ensure children are treated appropriately for their age and understanding.
- Allow children time to find counsel and coordinate with legal service organizations that specialize in assisting minors.
Take Five minutes to send a quick email to your senators and representative urging them to support this important bill.
Find your U.S. senators here.
Find your U.S. representative here.
On their contact pages, copy and paste (or feel free to use your own words):
I strongly urge you to support the Immigration Court Efficiency and Children’s Court Act of 2023, because every child deserves a fair chance.
Please let me know how you plan to vote on this bill.
Then email us here with “I Urged My Electors to Support Children Seeking Asylum” in the
