September 15, 2021
Kids in Need of Defense (KIND) submits the following comments in response to the above-referenced request for comments.1 KIND is the leading national nonprofit organization working to ensure that no child faces immigration court alone. Since January 2009, KIND has received referrals for more than 21,000 cases from 77 countries and now serves over 5,000 children annually in partnership with nearly 700 law firm, corporate, law school, and bar association partners. KIND has field and satellite offices in thirteen cities: Los Angeles, San Francisco, Fresno, Atlanta, Baltimore, Boston, Houston, El Paso, Newark, New York City, Seattle, Falls Church, VA and Washington, DC. Legal services professionals who serve children through KIND provide defense in removal proceedings and pursue immigration benefits. KIND works with trafficked unaccompanied children, and has filed for, obtained, and mentored pro bono attorneys in pursuing T nonimmigrant status (also known as T visas) on behalf of unaccompanied children.
