KIND’s Keeping Kids Safe campaign is a 10-year initiative designed to transform outdated laws, shift conversations about child immigration to center child protection, and reform the way the current U.S. immigration system—and subsequently protection systems across the globe—treats children. KIND envisions a future in which unaccompanied children receive the protections they deserve.
This campaign is the newest chapter in KIND’s longstanding efforts to promote laws and policies that protect vulnerable children throughout their migration journey. By engaging a broad spectrum of policymakers and the public, Keeping Kids Safe aims to systemically reform the child immigration process so that it puts children’s safety and well-being at the center.
Dive into our comprehensive Child Protection Advocacy Series, where we explain What the Keeping Kids Safe campaign is, the importance of the Children’s Court Bill and explore key aspects of child safety. Each video in this playlist sheds light on critical issues surrounding child protection, legal reforms, and the ongoing efforts dedicated to #KeepingKidsSafe. Share and join the conversation, and be a part of the movement to safeguard children.
Join KIND's Keeping Kids Safe campaign to reform outdated systems that fail to protect unaccompanied children in the U.S. and globally. Millions of children are forced to flee war, poverty, and crises, navigating an immigration system not designed for them. Together, we can build a system that prioritizes children's safety.
KIND’s Keeping Kids Safe Campaign has developed a set of questions to help the public engage with candidates and elected officials in support of unaccompanied children. With targeted questions that promote child-centered policies and support initiatives like KIND’s Keeping Kids Safe Campaign and the Immigration Court Efficiency and Children’s Court Act of 2023 (S.3178/H.R.6145), these […]
Read MoreCommunity Engagement Guide: Advancing Protections for Unaccompanied Children This guide aims to be a comprehensive resource on issues regarding unaccompanied children and child protection. Designed for anyone who wants to engage with these critical issues, the guide includes answers to tough questions with a child-centered approach. By promoting correct, factual information, this guide supports community […]
Read MoreKIND envisions a future in which unaccompanied children receive the protections they deserve. Currently, that is far from reality.
Across the globe, a record number of children are displaced and forced to migrate due to war, poverty, gang violence, disease, climate change, and political upheaval. In 2021, over 36 million children were forcibly displaced from their homes. More than half of the world’s 26 million registered refugees are children. Some of these children migrate alone, without a parent or guardian. In 2022, U.S. Customs and Border Protection apprehended over 150,000 unaccompanied children at or near the United States’ border, a near tenfold increase from the 16,067 apprehensions in 2011.
Laws and policies governing the treatment of unaccompanied children seeking safety in the United States are inflexible, outdated, and do not adequately protect these vulnerable children. When unaccompanied children arrive to the United States, they confront an adversarial, punitive immigration system that does not consider their best interests, age, traumatic experiences, or language barriers—all without the guarantee of legal representation. Many children are returned to their countries of origin with no support system to help them reintegrate safely. Children who are permitted to remain in the United States often do not have the resources or capacity to navigate the challenges of building a new life in a new country.
A core set of principles guide this campaign and its policy priorities. Click here to learn more about our campaign principles.
KIND has assembled a Leadership Council to ensure that the campaign is informed by a broad and deeply knowledgeable group of expert advisors. The Leadership Council will play a crucial role in the Keeping Kids Safe campaign by advising KIND on children-first, pragmatic policy solutions and recommendations. These experts and visionary leaders will also help KIND build broad support for transforming the child protection landscape for unaccompanied children through public engagement and outreach to policy makers.
New Legislation
The bipartisan Immigration Court Efficiency and Children’s Court Act of 2023 would establish a Children’s Court within the Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR) focused on the adjudication of unaccompanied children’s removal proceedings. Learn more about this pivotal piece of legislation.
KIND has assembled a Leadership Council to ensure that the campaign is informed by a broad and deeply knowledgeable group of expert advisors. For a full list of all Leadership Council members, click here.
For more information and to contact the campaign, please e-mail: KeepingKidsSafe@supportkind.org
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