Bilingual volunteers sought in Phoenix to spend time with migrant kids facing deportation (Matthew Casey, KJZZ)
The program is run by the Young Center for Immigrant Children’s Rights, which matches each volunteer with a migrant child to spend about an hour of quality time together each week. “The goal is to develop a slow-growth organic relationship. And to be a positive, safe adult in that child’s life,” said Isobel Conroy, Arizona volunteer coordinator. “If they want to read, if they want to explore some of (the child’s) hobbies. Making music. Making art. Anything that would be helpful or would be of interest to the child. We encourage our volunteers to get creative.”
What You Can Learn From an Ambitious Joint Fundraising Campaign (Emily Haynes, The Chronicle of Philanthropy)
The six nonprofits banding together are Al Otro Lado, Justice in Motion, KIND, National Immigration Project, Together & Free, and the Young Center for Immigrant Children’s Rights. Led by Kelly Albinak Kribs, co-director of the technical assistance program at the Young Center, and Kate Wheatcroft, founder of Together & Free, the nonprofits discussed what support they could offer families, how much work they could get done in two years, and how much money they needed to pay for it. They settled on a $3 million fundraising goal to cover legal aid for 500 cases and signed a memorandum of understanding to guide the campaign. The effort launched on February 12 and will conclude on June 1. To date, the groups have raised $1.75 million.
Merkley, Kamlager-Dove Introduce Legislation to Protect Children in Government Custody (Press Release)
Oregon’s U.S. Senator Jeff Merkley and U.S. Congresswoman Sydney Kamlager-Dove (D-CA-37) today led colleagues in the introduction of the Children’s Safe Welcome Act of 2024. The bicameral Children’s Safe Welcome Act embeds child welfare best practices into every stage of our immigration system involving both unaccompanied and accompanied children who seek asylum in the U.S. "As child advocates, we bear witness every day to children’s experiences in federal detention, their fight to reunify with family, and their need for stability while they wait for the government to hear their requests for protection and permanency,” said Mary Miller Flowers, Director of Policy and Legislative Affairs for the Young Center for Immigrant Children’s Rights. “At its core, the Children’s Safe Welcome Act is a recognition that all children deserve a safe journey to adulthood, bolstered by the support and care of loving family and community. This bill shifts us one step closer to that vision and we are ready to fight to make it a reality.”
National Immigration Law Center Announces Campaign to Protect K-12 Public Education Access for All Children (Press Release)
A coalition of 35 organizations, led by the National Immigration Law Center, launched Education for All – a new campaign to protect access to K-12 public education for all kids, regardless of their immigration status. The campaign, which includes leading education, immigrant rights, and civil rights organizations, aims to ensure all children have continued access to a free K-12 public education, as mandated by law. The campaign will monitor and defend the right to an education, a bedrock of our country’s democracy, against extreme politicians and organizations that seek to weaken our public schools by scapegoating immigrant communities. “At the Young Center for Immigrant Children’s Rights, we firmly believe that every child, regardless of their immigration status, deserves access to public education,” said Jane Liu, director of policy and litigation, Young Center for Immigrant Children’s Rights. “The Supreme Court’s decision in Plyler v. Doe affirmed this fundamental right, recognizing that our society thrives when every child has the opportunity to learn and grow. We are proud to join this campaign to protect public education for all, including immigrant children.”
How Caregiver Separation Harms Children: A Biological Lens to One Child’s Trauma (Report Jared E. Boyce, B.A., Sc.M.)
This report discusses the story of Baby Doe, an infant from Afghanistan whose parents died during a raid by U.S. Marines. She was initially placed with relatives but one Marine, Joshua Mast, would “adopt” her without her caregivers’ knowledge. The report briefly explains the history and neuroscience of maternal separation, and advocates for Baby Doe to be returned to her rightful caregivers.
