Beyond their wildest fever dreams
In Tucson, Arizona, children are forced to represent themselves in immigration court.
When I mean children, I don't mean 16 year olds, or 12 year olds, I mean 3 year old kids.
This is despicable.
On Aug. 18, 17 minors appeared in front of Pima County Judge Irene C. Feldman in immigration court. Fourteen of them did not have legal representation.
Lucy, a 3-year-old girl wearing a purple dress and beaded bracelets, was called to the front of the courthouse by the judge. She spoke limited English and did not have legal representation.
A lawyer with the Florence Immigrant and Refugee Rights Project (FIRRP), a nonprofit providing legal services, accompanied the child to the stand to provide additional information to the judge regarding her case.
As the judge asked Lucy questions through a Spanish-speaking interpreter about her two stuffed animals, Lucy looked around the packed courthouse with her thumb in her mouth, remaining silent.
She was one of many children without legal counsel.
Judge Feldman asked attorneys with the FIRRP, who were in court representing three of their clients, if they would consider taking on Lucy’s case.
The attorney explained that the organization lost most of their federal funding in March after the Trump administration terminated contracts. As a result, the group is unable to take on new clients.
In the meanwhile, the toddler will have to seek representation elsewhere.
Assuming that there are elections in 2024 and 2028, we need to turn over a whole bunch of these folks to the Hague, or Guantanamo, or a Turkish prison.
I favor the Hague, because I want to see the law crush them, not some abusive prison guard.
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