Recent order so sad for unaccompanied children

By Amanda Mitchell Diaz

Non-Profit Immigration Attorney

In a time of polarization and deepening political resentment, and one order from the executive branch was issued last week that upset people on both sides of the aisle.

On Tuesday, Feb. 18, the Department of Interior sent a letter to Acacia Center for Justice, ordering the immediate halt of all legal representation of unaccompanied children. Fortunately, the United States District Court for the District of Columbia issued a temporary restraining order late Thursday in two unrelated cases, which led to the rescission of the stop work order at hand.

I have been an immigration attorney for more than 15 years, and I currently work for one organization that represents unaccompanied children. This stop work order was among the most unconscionable and unconstitutional orders I have ever seen. Although we have been allowed to return to work on our cases, the events that transpired last week still matter.

Unaccompanied children (UACs) are classified as children under the age of 18, who arrived at the United States border without a parent or guardian. Some arrive with adult family members such as aunts and uncles, some arrive with older siblings, and some arrive practically alone, among other groups of children that they met along the way. Most UACs are from Honduras, El Salvador, and Guatemala — the Northern Triangle — and cross multiple international borders to get to the U.S. They face dangers on their journey that, after a day of client interviews when I hear their stories, make me hug my own children a little tighter after work.

UACs are a particularly vulnerable group to human trafficking and abuse, both along their journey to the U.S. and after their arrival. For that reason, Congress passed the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act (“TVPRA”).

The purpose of the TVPRA is to protect children from human trafficking, and part of it includes provisions to provide UACs with free legal representation. It has been in effect for about two decades and has always held strong bipartisan support. Protecting children from human trafficking is an issue that transcends political parties because it is, quite simply, the only right thing to do.

The Constitutional question comes twofold.

First, there is the question of Separation of Powers. Congress designates the budget for this endeavor, and the executive branch is to provide the funding. This case is currently only one among many, and it is of deep concern because the checks and balances on which our democracy depends is at stake. The District Court noted that “blanket suspension was likely arbitrary and capricious under the Administrative Procedure Act (APA) for failing to consider the immense reliance interests of business and organizations around the country.”

Court case: American Federation of Government Employees, AFL-CIO and American Federation of State, County And Municipal Employees, AFL-CIO v. Donald Trump et al (D.D.C.); Case No. 1:25-cv-00264.

Acacia Center for Justice is the organization that directly receives congressionally appropriated funding, and this funding is then distributed to contracted local nonprofit agencies across the country to provide the legal representation to UACs. Currently around 26,000 children are represented through the Acacia network.

This leads to the second Constitutional question, that of Due Process. Last week, all of those children abruptly lost access to their representation. Because of their tender ages, it is nearly impossible for UACs to navigate the ever-increasing complexities of the U.S. Immigration Court system. Many of them qualify for relief under current immigration law, but without legal advocacy, this relief would basically be impossible to obtain.

Additionally, legal representatives were forced into an ethical quandary: obey an executive order or honor our ethical obligations as attorneys to our clients, many of whom had hearings and important deadlines last week.

This was a devastating blow to not only the children directly affected and the entire industry that feared mass layoffs, but also to our nation, and even our very humanity. What are the United States if not a beacon of democracy, freedom, and a place that offers protection to the most vulnerable?

Amanda Mitchell Diaz is a non-profit immiration attorney who lives in Lockhart with her office in Austin.