The result is that of the more than 5,000 children detained, many are in juvenile correction facilities where they are commingled with delinquents. Detainees have become the fastest growing incarcerated population in our country. I was particularly stunned by the plight of those seeking asylum. Many of these individuals persecuted, jailed and tortured in their homelands have sought our promise of safety and shelter only to face de facto incarceration instead. Family members are routinely separated and detained, often for months, at different sites.
Detainees are frequently unaware of the whereabouts of family members.
I also learned there is hope. The ABA, through the efforts of the Coordinating Committee on Immigration Law, established the South Texas Pro Bono Asylum Representation Project, or ProBAR, a national effort that provides pro bono legal services to asylum-seekers in South Texas. Another program, the ABA s Immigration Pro Bono Development and Bar Activation Project, is now in its 10th year, and has helped many immigrants secure effective legal representation. Through minigrants to state and local bars, the association has stimulated innovative, sustainable pro bono representation programs. The ABA recently approved the project s request for funding of an emergency pro bono representation initiative for the thousands of immigrant and refugee children detained annually.