02.07.2018
Washington, DC — KIND will publicly oppose any legislation, legislative language, amendment, administrative measure, or policy in negotiations on immigration that seeks to roll back critical protections and narrow forms of relief for unaccompanied children or any other vulnerable population.
KIND is deeply concerned by the insistence of the White House and Congressional Republicans on legislation that rolls back critical protections for the most vulnerable such as unaccompanied children in exchange for DREAM.
“Promoting the protection of one group of young people at the expense of another is absolutely unacceptable, repugnant, and a nonstarter,” said KIND President Wendy Young. “This language is non-negotiable. KIND will forcefully and publicly oppose any attempts by any member of Congress to trade on the backs of the most vulnerable like unaccompanied children, asylum seekers, and refugees.”
The solution to the child migrant crisis is not rolling back due process protections or eliminating narrow forms of existing relief. Rather, the solution is meaningful access to justice through timely, not fast-tracked immigration proceedings, providing counsel, including pro bono attorneys, for these children who are often fleeing horrific gang violence from which their governments are unwilling or unable to protect them, and addressing the root causes of violence in these countries.
###
Media Contact: Megan McKenna, mmckenna@supportkind.org, 202-631-9990