Unaccompanied immigrant kids program loses funds after DHHS cuts

CHARLOTTE, NC — Government cuts in Washington D.C. are hitting programs in Charlotte.

It’s been an uneasy few days for the Charlotte Center for Legal Advocacy after finding out on Friday that their $900,000 contract through the Department of Health and Human Services has been canceled.

“We’re concerned that a lot of children who are particularly vulnerable are going to be left without any advocate for them,

The government funded Unaccompanied Children Program, that has been around since the 90s, ends April 1st. The program provided legal counsel, travel expenses, and even a court interrupter for immigrants 21 and younger attempting to come to America legally.

The Charlotte Center for Legal Advocacy currently has about 300 pending cases. Kids trying to flee dangerous living conditions for a better life.

Ezra Rasch is one of the lawyers working within the program to help immigrant children. One of his latest cases involved two brothers from Honduras. Rasch tells The 14 and 9 year old boys were being threatened by gangs and even had to watch as their mother was attacked.

“You could tell that they had been through something that is going to stay with them for the rest of their lives,” said Rasch.

In just a matter of months, the boys were granted asylum. Without the resources provided by the program, they’d likely still be in the early stages of the legal process.

With the money running out, the 300 other children in the Charlotte likely won’t be as lucky.

The Interim CEO of Charlotte Center for Legal Advocacy says they plan to meet their obligations as lawyers for those 300 cases.
But they may also have to withdraw many of the case and can’t take on any new ones.