Do the Right Thing: Upholding the United States’ Commitment to Protect Children Fleeing Persecution

by Anna Gallagher, Shareholder

Anadelcy was fifteen years old when she witnessed a gang member murder a young man in her town in El Salvador. A curious and bright young girl, Anadelcy was at school on that particular day studying for exams. As she looked out a window of the classroom, she saw a member of the 18 Gang shoot a young man at point blank range. Unfortunately for her, the murderer saw her. Because of the very real threat that gang members would want to silence her, she fled the country shortly after the incident and arrived at the US Southwest border in 2012 where she was stopped by Customs and Border Protection and placed in deportation proceedings. Luckily, through Catholic Charities, a non-governmental organization advocating for greater respect for migrants and refugees, Anadelcy was able to find pro bono counsel to represent her and was ultimately granted asylum. She recently completed high school and has been accepted to a university where she intends to study medicine.[1]

Click here to read more of this post by Anna Gallagher for the Center for Migration Studies
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