Main fundraiser photo

Help asylum-seeking kids stuck in Tijuana

"Por que nos matan, por que nos asesinan, si somos la esperanza de America latina" - it translates to "Why do they kill us, why do they murder us, if we are the hope of Latin America"


Children sang this.  While sitting on the sidewalk on US soil asking for asylum.


A group of attorneys, including myself, Christina Brown, Ava Benach, Andrew Free and Ana Pottratz Acosta, went to Tijuana to represent asylum seekers who are being forced to wait in Tijuana because of an illegal "list" ("metering") system being used by the United States and Mexico. The goal of the list is to allow only a small number of asylum seekers into the United States at a time. We were a part of the 17-hour standoffat the Otay Mesa Port of Entry, where we demanded  CBP respect asylum seekers' (including very small children and unaccompanied minors’) right to request asylum. It took CBP 17 hours, 15 lawyers, two members of Congress, and media attention to follow the law and process the 20 asylum seekers, 16 of whom were under the age of 18.


Hundreds of children are waiting in Tijuana, without their parents, to seek asylum in the US.  These are "unaccompanied minors." They are required to live in shelters in Tijuana, and often cannot leave shelter grounds for fear of being caught my Mexican immigration officials and deported to their countries of origin.


These children are told they cannot put their names on the illegal list, which is currently the only way to access the asylum process in the US—and if they attempt to go to the port of entry to claim asylum they are detained by Mexican immigration authorities and returned to the shelter. These policies effectively deny them access to apply for asylum in the United States. We witnessed Mexican officials monitoring ports of entry, and unaccompanied minors—even when accompanied by attorneys—have been detained by Mexican immigration authorities as they approach these ports.


So what does this mean for the children who want to assert their right to ask for asylum in the United States? It means they wait in Mexico, where they are at increased risk of physical danger and face a severe lack of resources. Tijuana is the fifth most dangerous city in the world, and children are particularly vulnerable to organized crime. At the shelters, they have no access to schools, trauma counseling, or mental health counseling, and have limited access to volunteer immigration attorneys.  These children need a tutor, a mental health professional, an immigration attorney, and increased security at the shelter.


Two Honduran teenagers waiting to enter the United States to ask for asylum were murdered in Tijuana last weekend. They would have been in the United States if not for our government’s current anti-asylum policies, which defy domestic and international law. They would have had access to the advantages Congress granted minors in the US immigration system, advantages to which this administration is bent on denying access. By blocking any means they had of asking for asylum, our government is just as culpable for the deaths of those two boys as it is for that of seven-year-old Jakelin Amei Rosmery Caal Maquin. The very least we can do as individuals is support the other unaccompanied children at the shelter who are being forced to wait in Tijuana.


We are raising this money for Al Otro Lado, the US-based organization coordinating support for unaccompanied minors in Tijuana. They will use the money for:


- Christmas presents for the kids in the unaccompanied minor shelters (these have already been purchased but the funds will reimburse those expenses)


- A trauma counselor. These children are dealing with the murder of two of their friends, in addition to the traumas they experienced in their home countries and on their journey to Mexico. They are children. Right now, there are no mental health professionals to help them and that is a critical need.


- A full-time teacher. There are currently no resources to provide these kids any education.  This tutor will work with the kids and provide educational resources while they wait for CBP to stop breaking the law and process them for asylum. These are kids. They should be in school.  


- Enhanced security at the shelter. Given the recent murder of two teenagers staying at the shelter, this is critical. These shelters need cameras, recording systems, staff, upgraded doors, etc.  


- An attorney who specializes in unaccompanied minors, and who can focus on these kids and their specific legal needs.


All of the money will go to fund Al Otro Lado's work and what they deem to be the greatest need.  Because Al Otro Lado is a GoFundMe Certified Charity and this is a charity campaign, your donation is tax-deductible and will be processed by the PayPal Giving Fund.  (Pictures above from Reuters and Al Otro Lado volunteers.)

Fundraising team (3)

Kara Lynum
Organiser
Raised $36,593 from 505 donations
St. Paul, MN
AL Otro Lado Inc
 
Registered charity
Donations are typically 100% tax-deductible in the US.
Anna Joseph
Team member
Raised $15,185 from 53 donations
Christina Brown
Team member
Raised $807 from 20 donations

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