A Colorado nonprofit that provides attorneys for immigrant children separated from their parents was allowed to resume its work Friday after the Trump administration rescinded a stop work order that had ended legal services for unaccompanied children.
The stop work order affecting 90 legal services organizations nationwide was issued by the Department of the Interior on Tuesday and rescinded Friday, without explanation.
Rocky Mountain Immigrant Advocacy Network, which is representing about 160 unaccompanied children in immigration proceedings, said it was “thrilled†and thankful for the “immense outpouring of support†from people in Colorado and across the country “who demanded that this essential work protecting children continue.â€
“Capriciously putting stop-work orders on life-saving immigration legal services for children is contrary to our values as a society that believes in the rule of law and equal access to justice,†RMIAN’s executive director, Mekela Goehring, said Friday in a news release. “These actions put lives at risk, and further destabilize families and communities.â€
The order was sent to the Acacia Center for Justice, a nonprofit that receives federal funding and supports RMIAN and other legal service providers across the country. The organizations represent more than 26,000 children in immigration court proceedings. The children are in the custody of the Office of Refugee Resettlement, or have been released from custody but are still involved in immigration cases.
The Colorado nonprofit is helping children as young as 2 years old, as well as teenagers who ran away from abuse, neglect and trafficking, the organization said.Â
The order affecting children came after a similar order issued by the U.S. Department of Justice in January that halted legal services for adult immigrants. Legal service providers over the order affecting adults. And just like what happened with the order regarding unaccompanied children, organizations were allowed to resume work after the administration rescinded the order.