Safe Passage Project provides free lawyers to young refugees and immigrants who are being deported. To date, we have supported more than 1,000 young people in NYC. The New York Immigration Court has more than 15,000 cases involving unaccompanied minors on its docket, many of whom are fleeing trauma such as gang violence and recruitment, abuse, and sexual assault.
Immigrant children are not afforded free legal representation by the government, regardless of their age. As a result more than half of immigrant children must go through immigration proceedings without the aid of a lawyer. Without a lawyer, more than 80% of children are issued deportation orders, returning to the danger from which they fled. This is where Safe Passage Project steps in, providing free legal assistance to these refugees and immigrant children in New York City and Long Island.