MK Attorneys and Paralegals Join Catholic Charities to Help Unaccompanied Minors
by Elizabeth Carlson, Attorney
On September 27, 2014, Maggio Kattar attorneys, paralegals and administrative staff participated in a screening for unaccompanied immigrant youth organized by the Esperanza Center of Catholic Charities, Baltimore at Patterson High School in Baltimore, Maryland. Over 50 minors were interviewed and screened for pro bono representation. The volunteers spent hours speaking with the children and their guardians, listening to their often heartbreaking stories, and identifying potential forms of relief for the minors. Maggio Kattar will be representing three of the children in proceedings before the Immigration Court.
Shareholder Anna Gallagher has taken an active role in working with the government and with non-profit organizations to identify legal counsel for minors who are currently residing in the Maryland/Virginia/Washington, D.C., to mentor pro bono attorneys taking on these cases and to develop and participate in trainings for pro bono attorneys new to this area of the law.
As background, approximately 70,000 children have arrived in the United States this fiscal year. Daily arrivals reached as high as 1,000 children crossing the southern border into the United States. These numbers are twice those for the previous year and have led to strident debate on immigration policy locally and nationally. While the news has reported widely on those against letting the children into the United States, individuals, organizations, churches, state and local governments have welcomed them into their homes and their communities.
The great majority of these children are fleeing violence in Honduras, Guatemala, El Salvador and Mexico. Between 60 to 75% of the children are in their teens. However, children under twelve traveling with older siblings or smugglers are a are a growing percentage of the arrivals. Three quarters of the children are from Honduras El Salvador and Guatemala.
Violence and poverty in home countries and a desire to reunite with family who are in the United States are driving the numbers. For example, Honduras, El Salvador and Guatemala are in the top five countries with the highest homicide rates in the world. Although crime has always been a problem in the region since the 1980s, the recent spike is the result of weak institutions, corrupt governments and law enforcement and increasing gang activity. Extortion by gang members is rampant in these countries. Boys and young men are targeted for recruitment and are often victims of crimes committed by the gangs. Girls and young women are targets for unwanted attention and sexual violence by gang members.
In addition to extreme levels of violence, Honduras, El Salvador and Guatemala also suffer high poverty rates. For example, in Honduras, 52% of the population lives on less than $ 4 a day. In Guatemala and El Salvador, those percentages are 53.5% and 42.7% respectively. Although economic opportunity is a strong push factor in migration, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) released a recent study concluding that more children flee their countries because of threats of violence than lack of economic opportunity.
The Maggio Kattar volunteers were honored to participate in providing legal assistance for those most vulnerable. These efforts continue the firm’s long tradition of providing pro bono service to those in need.