Immigration Justice Clinic Students To Work With Asylum-Seeking Women And Children
December 20, 2016 - Kathryn O. Greenberg Immigration Justice Clinic received a $9,000 donation from Kathryn Greenberg that will allow a group of students to work with asylum-seeking women and children who are being held in a family detention center in Dilley, Texas. The trip, which would be done in coordination with a pro bono legal services organization near the detention center, would last one week. The donation covers the entire cost of the trip for the eight-person group.
“It is wonderful that our students will be able to bring their passion and legal skills to advocate for these families who have fled extreme violence and, without the assistance of counsel, will almost certainly be forced to return to face the same danger,” said Professor Lindsay Nash.
The majority of these asylum-seeking families are from Guatemala, Honduras, and El Salvador. Virtually all of them are detained because they are in summary removal proceedings in which they must pass a cursory screening to determine if they have a “credible fear of persecution,” which is a prerequisite for them to even get an asylum hearing in immigration court. Students will be involved in a range of representation work, including helping to prepare mothers and children for credible fear interviews, representing them before the IJ in connection with the credible fear process and in seeking release, and other types of advocacy for the detained mothers and children.
“We applaud Kathryn Greenberg for recognizing that, during this time of uncertainty and fear, our students can help change the lives of some of the most vulnerable among us,” said Professor Nash.
Additional donations are welcomed. If you would like to contribute to this important project, please contact Lindsay Nash, Visiting Assistant Clinical Professor, at 212.790.0433 or lindsay.nash@yu.edu.