Legal Representation Crucial for Refugee Children

The stories below are based off real client experiences. However, all names and specific details have been altered as a matter of privacy and confidentiality.

Juana was 11 years old when she came to the U.S. from Honduras. She lived with her grandparents, but they could not protect her from the violence engulfing their country. A cousin helped her make the treacherous journey from Honduras to the U.S. She got across the southern border in to Texas, but she was quickly apprehended by border patrol officers. The border patrol officers explained her rights to her including her right to make a phone call, her right to be represented by an attorney and her right to see an immigration judge. The problem was that the officer read these rights to her in English. She only spoke Spanish. She unwittingly nodded her head, and she was transferred to a facility with other children who came into the U.S. without their parents. She was ultimately released to her mother in Kansas.

Unknown to her, and her mother, she also was placed in immigration proceedings and given an immigration hearing. She had no idea how the immigration legal system worked and neither did her mom. Juana was just excited to be reunited with her mother. Unfortunately, neither understood Juana’s obligation to go to court to see an immigration judge. Juana did not attend her hearing and was ordered deported from the U.S. She now faces the daunting task of trying to reopen her case and see if she is eligible for some sort of relief or get deported to the violent country she fled. At this point, the difference between having an attorney and not having an attorney could be the difference between protection in the U.S. or potential persecution or death in Honduras.

For the past two years, women and children refugees from three Central American countries, Honduras, Guatemala and El Salvador, have come to the U.S. in record numbers due to significant violence and failing police systems in their countries. Many of the women and children who come to the U.S. are eligible for asylum. According to the Asylum Office, part of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, close to 90% of families who have come to the U.S. have shown a credible fear of persecution or torture. Legally, this means that the Asylum Office has determined that they have a significant possibility to be granted asylum in the U.S.

Unfortunately, just having shown a credible fear of persecution does not protect all of these refugees. After these refugees are found to have a credible fear they are placed in immigration court before and immigration judge. If the refugees are unaccompanied minors, they do not have to show a credible fear of persecution at the border. However, they are still placed in immigration court. For both groups of refugees, the presence of an attorney can be the difference between getting asylum in the U.S. and getting deported to the country they fled.

According to the Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse (TRAC) at Syracuse University, almost 50 percent of unaccompanied children are unrepresented at immigration proceedings. Of all the deportation orders issued by immigration judges against children in 2014 and 2015, almost 90 percent of them were unrepresented. The number of deportation orders against children for failing to appear in court (also called in absentia orders) were even higher at almost 97 percent. These numbers were similar for families. 86 percent of families ordered removed were unrepresented and almost 97 percent of families order deported in absentia were unrepresented.

These striking numbers show the absolute necessity for representation of these refugees. When they come to the U.S., they have no idea how to navigate the treacherous maze of immigration law, they do not speak the language, and often they have limited education and little money. For unaccompanied children, particularly younger children, they have no ability to speak for or defend themselves in court or the asylum office, if they even make it to court or the asylum office.

When I tell acquaintances unfamiliar with immigration law that immigrants, even child refugees from Central America, are not appointed attorneys, many are shocked. Criminal defendants are required to have representation because of the implication of prison time or other deprivation of liberty. Despite the grave consequences of immigration proceedings, particularly for these refugees, immigration cases are considered civil. There is no requirement for appointment of counsel.

However, Senator Harry Reid recently introduced a bill to require appointment of counsel, even at the cost of the government if necessary, for unaccompanied children, disabled individuals, and victims of abuse, torture or violence. The bill would also permit the immigration court to appoint attorneys for any person in immigration court, although it is not required. This is a step in the right direction. Although there is little hope it will pass as a bill, the importance of representation must be acknowledged, as highlighted by the statistics from TRAC. No refugee or child should be ordered deported without representation from competent attorneys.


 

DISCLAIMER: Nothing in this blog should be construed as legal advice. If you are in removal proceedings or need legal advice on your immigration case, please contact an immigration attorney.

U.S. Ignores Refugee Crisis At Its Own Border

The stories below are based off real client experiences. However, all names and specific details have been altered as a matter of privacy and confidentiality.

A humanitarian refugee crisis has engulfed much of Europe for several months. While the U.S. debates its role in the crisis, it continues to ignore the much closer humanitarian crisis south of its border. Last summer, hundreds of thousands of women and children came to the U.S. border seeking asylum from Central America. Like some European countries, many anti-immigrant groups called it an “invasion” and some even directly confronted the immigrants.

While the two crises share many similarities, they differ in one important way. The individuals in Europe fleeing violence mainly in the Middle East and Africa are considered refugees. The individuals fleeing violence in Central America are not. That designation means a world of difference. Refugees are subject to international protections provided by the United Nations and other non-governmental organizations. Although refugees often spend several years in refugee camps while they are processed, they are generally protected from the violence of their old countries.

On the other side, immigrants from Central America are not considered refugees. Although these brutally violent gangs have infiltrated every level of government, the U.S. Government has refused to recognize them as refugees. Despite calls from the United Nations for the U.S. to recognize the refugee crisis, the government continues to treat them as migrants. As such, they are subject to the restrictive asylum laws on the U.S. Although the governments in Central America are unable to protect its citizens from the violence, most people fleeing the violence do not qualify for asylum under U.S. law. Under the law, people fleeing general states of violence are not refugees. The law draws a line in the sand and few can cross it. This leaves immigrants from Central America in the U.S., like Madalyn and her son, with few options against deportation.

Madalyn lived in El Salvador with her 11 year old son, Marco. Marco loved to play soccer and play outside. Unfortunately, the soccer fields were a gathering spot for gang members also. These gang members recruit children even as young as Marco to commit crimes, including extortion and murder. Marco was befriended by these young gang members who planned to lure him into the gang with promises of money and power. These same gang members also harassed Madalyn and threatened her and her son with death if they interfered with their criminal organization. These were not empty threats. El Salvador is one of the deadliest countries in the U.S. Particularly, women and children are at risk of murder at the hands of the mostly male gangs.

Madalyn fled El Salvador. After making the dangerous trip through Mexico with her son, she came to the U.S. border seeking asylum. Although she is set for a trial on her asylum claim, she faces an uncertain future. If she loses, she and her children will be deported to El Salvador, where she will face even greater harm after deportation. Madalyn is one of thousands of stories of Central American refugees. Women and children continue to flee brutal violence in Guatemala, El Salvador and Honduras at incredible rates. The U.S. cannot continue to ignore this refugee crisis.


DISCLAIMER: Nothing in this blog should be construed as legal advice. If you are in removal proceedings or need legal advice on your immigration case, please contact an immigration attorney.

LGBT Community Gains Acceptance in U.S. But Many Countries Lag Behind

The stories below are based off real client experiences. However, all names and specific details have been altered as a matter of privacy and confidentiality.

In June, the Supreme Court held that gay marriage is a legal right protected by the U.S. Constitution. This was the culmination of decades of changing attitudes in U.S. society toward the LGBT community. Although some people are still fighting against equality in the U.S., a solid majority of Americans believe in equal treatment toward the LGBT community. Unfortunately, many countries outside the U.S. have not made the same legal or cultural movements toward acceptance and equality. For example, in Mexico, some states and cities have passed legal protections for LGBT rights, but the cultural attitudes and discrimination toward the LGBT community have not changed, has evidenced by Patricia’s story.

Patricia was born in Mexico. She knew at a young age she was gay. Her family, especially her father, did not accept her true identity. She struggled for years trying to conform to societal expectations of how women should dress and act. No matter how hard she tried to wear dresses and act like a women, she never felt happy. As a young adult she finally found the courage to share her identity with others. She accepted her true identity and began dressing and acting in a way that made her happy. She began dating other women in public. Because of this, she became a target for violence and discrimination. She was continually harassed for her appearance and behavior. She had trouble finding work because of discrimination from bosses and employees. On one occasion, while she was at a house party, police arrested her because of a made-up complaint from a bigoted neighbor. On the way to the police station, the officers drove her to an empty field and beat her with their batons and kicked her until she became unconscious because of her identity, because she looked, spoke, dressed and acted like a gay women. She eventually fled for the U.S. to avoid the violence and discrimination.

Fortunately, Patricia had relief in the U.S. from being sent back to Mexico. She could apply for asylum or withholding of removal. Under these forms of relief, a person will be allowed to stay in the U.S. if they can prove they will be persecuted on account of their identity, including race, religion, nationality, political opinion, or in Patricia’s case, membership in a  particular social group. Ultimately, Patricia was granted withholding of removal based on her LGBT identity. In Mexico, she would be forced to conceal her identity or be a target for further violence and discrimination because of lingering societal and cultural discrimination and violence against the LGBT community. Sadly, in many countries Patricia’s story is a normal occurrence, not an exception. Many countries do not provide any legal protection or rights to members of the LGBT community. In some countries, particularly in Africa, Middle East and some parts of Asia, LGBT behavior is criminalized and subject to severe punishment.  People from these countries continue to hide their identity for fear of discrimination, harm or even death. Fortunately, the U.S. provides a way for these people to come to and remain in the U.S. where both the law and most of society will accept them for their true identity.


DISCLAIMER: Nothing in this blog should be construed as legal advice. If you are in removal proceedings or need legal advice on your immigration case, please contact an immigration attorney.

Central American Migration Has Subsided, But Issues Remain: A Kansas City Immigration Attorney’s Take

The stories below are based off real client experiences. However, all names and specific details have been altered as a matter of privacy and confidentiality.

This summer was dominated by headlines of the increased migration of mostly women and children from Central America, namely Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador. Immigration opponents used fear to exaggerate the issue. Some called it an invasion. Some blamed the migration on President Obama’s DACA program. Those stories have mostly subsided. However, the issues that caused the migration from these Central American countries have not changed. Many of the women and children, like Linda and her children, came to the U.S. fleeing abusive and violent partners and a government unable to protect them.

Linda was born and raised in Honduras. From the age of 20 to 22, she lived in her own personal hell. She rarely left her home. She either was not allowed to or was too afraid to leave. Her boyfriend controlled her emotionally and physically. He often came home drunk or high and beat her with a chain or belt on the stomach or back (so clothes would cover the bruises). He also often beat her 5 year old daughter.

One night, while Linda’s boyfriend was passed out on the couch, she fled to a friend’s house in a neighboring town. Two days later, though, her boyfriend, with the help of his friends, found her and dragged her back to the home. He beat her again, held a gun to her head and threatened to kill her and her family if she ever left again.

Unfortunately, this type of violence is common in Honduras, El Salvador and Guatemala. Due to a culture dominated by masculinity and violence, this treatment is often unreported by the victims, either because they are afraid of what will happen if they report the violence or because the authorities would not help. The crime rate in the region is one of the highest in the world. The police forces in El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras are inadequate and unable to stop gang violence, much less domestic violence.

Like many other women in the region, Linda’s only option was to flee. Eventually, with the help of her family, she was able to purchase a bus ticket to Mexico for her and her daughter and then crossed into the U.S.

In a recent case, the Board of Immigration Appeals recognized that women who suffer domestic abuse in their home country may be eligible for asylum. Asylum may be granted to individuals who can show a objective and subjective fear of harm on account of a protected characteristic, in this case the shared past experience as a victim of domestic abuse. After years of uncertainty, the Courts have finally recognized the cruelty in sending women like Linda and her children back to their countries and back to their abusers. Now it is time for the general public to understand this as well.


DISCLAIMER: Nothing in this blog should be construed as legal advice. If you are in removal proceedings or need legal advice on your immigration case, please contact an immigration attorney.