SAFE PASSAGE PROJECT CORPORATION
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Mission Statement
Safe Passage Project addresses the unmet legal needs of indigent immigrant youth living in New York by providing these indigent youth with basic advice and assistance. We work with volunteer attorneys to provide representation for unaccompanied minors in immigration court. Safe Passage provides training, resources, and mentoring to volunteer attorneys regarding Special Immigrant Juvenile (“SIJ”) status as well as other possible immigration alternatives for children.
About This Cause
Mission, Vision and Values Safe Passage Project was formed with the vision of creating an immigration process that is responsive to the needs of individual children and focused on the potential for our shared future. The Mission of Safe Passage Project is two-fold: To ensure fair and compassionate treatment of children and youth facing deportation; and to prepare attorneys and other professionals to represent children facing deportation successfully. Safe Passage Project values and believes that all children are our children, each child represents our future, and a well-trained and committed attorney is the voice of advocacy a child needs. Addressing an Unmet Need Safe Passage Project Corporation addresses the unmet legal needs of indigent immigrant youth living in New York City by providing these indigent youth with basic advice and assistance. Cases involving indigent children now comprise roughly 12% of the Immigration Court’s docket – 5000 cases in New York alone. Under current law, unaccompanied indigent children are not entitled to any government-provided legal representation in immigration proceedings. This can, and often does, mean that a boy as young as 6 years-old, or even younger, sits in front of an immigration judge with no one to speak on his behalf or to help him navigate the complicated and lengthy immigration court process. Not only is this lack of representation punishing for the child, but the lack of systematic legal representation for such children places a heavy burden on the already overburdened courts and personnel involved. Safe Passage Project History To ameliorate this situation, in the summer of 2012, the Executive Office of Immigration Review reached out to law schools and other not-for-profits for assistance. New York Law School agreed to expand the clinic it had been running since 2006, serving approximately twenty children per year. Under the supervision of Professor Lenni Benson, an experienced immigration attorney, the children, if they consented, would be taken out of the Immigration Court proceedings briefly for screening and evaluation provided by law students and pro bono attorneys. The clinic makes an assessment of the child’s eligibility for immigration status and, in appropriate cases, returns to the courtroom with the child to request a continuance. The clinic then tries to locate pro bono counsel to take on formal representation of the child. The Safe Passage Project clinic grew in response to the large number of children needing legal assistance and in May of 2013 The Safe Passage Project Corporation officially incorporated in New York State and received 501(c)3 status. The not-for-profit continues to work closely with New York Law School and other educational institutions. How Safe Passage Project Helps Safe Passage Project offers intake and screening to expand the availability of free legal services to indigent immigrant youth. The Project assists juveniles appearing before the court and advises their eventual representatives about the types of legal relief which may be available under United States immigration law, such as Special Immigrant Juvenile Status, Deferred Action/Prosecutorial Discretion, Political Asylum, U-Visas, T-Visas, VAWA (immigration relief for survivors of domestic violence), Family-Based Immigrant Petitions, and Citizenship or Derivative Citizenship options. Safe Passage Project staff members recruit pro bono attorneys and then work closely with both the child and his or her pro bono attorney throughout the duration of the case. Safe Passage remains involved until the legal plan is fulfilled. This role may include providing sample pleadings to pro bono attorneys, reviewing court documents prior to filing, translating documents and dissecting relevant case law, as well as communicating frequently with both the client and the pro bono counsel to answer questions and monitor progress. We also update counsel regarding changes in the law and trends in the immigration and family courts. Safe Passage also engages in outreach to High Schools and social service agencies to inform juveniles and their advocates of their rights under immigration law, and provides direct representation. Since August 2012, The Safe Passage Project has met with and screened more than 600 children. We are currently working with over 200 pro bono attorneys. We have trained and mentored hundreds of attorneys and law students to help immigrant children.