SAN BENITO — Thousands of children cross the border on a weekly basis.
A large percentage of those who cross are unaccompanied, without parent or guardian.
After arriving in the U.S., some are detained and housed in facilities where they are properly taken care off.
However, some of those children need an adult to be in their corner. The Young Center for Immigrant Children’s Rights calls these people advocates and they are always looking for volunteers.
Yesterday, Tomas D’Adamo, the center’s volunteer coordinator in Harlingen, discussed what the center needs in good advocates at the San Benito Chamber of Commerce’s weekly “Coffee With” session.
The mission of the Young Center for Immigrant Children’s Rights is to promote the best interests of unaccompanied immigrant children with due regard to the child’s expressed wishes, according to the convention on the rights of the child and state and federal law.
The center is a champion of the best interests of children who arrive in the United States on their own, from all corners of the world.
For the rest of this story and many other EXTRAS, go to our premium site, www.MyValleyStar.com.
Subscribe to it for only $6.99 per month or purchase a print subscription and receive the online version free, which includes an electronic version of the full newspaper and extra photo galleries, links and other information you can’t find anywhere else.
Before being assigned, Advocates are required to complete a two-day training session on child development, communicating with children, U.S. immigration law and issues facing unaccompanied immigrant children. Once assigned to an individual child, each Advocate receives continuing training, support, and supervision from the Young Center for Immigrant Children’s Rights.
A Child Advocate is an adult who volunteers to spend time with and advocate on behalf of an individual unaccompanied immigrant child while he or she is subject to immigration proceedings. The Young Center for Immigrant Children’s Rights welcomes volunteers from all cultures, professions, races, ethnicities and social backgrounds. Advocates must be at least 21 years old. The center has a particular need for bilingual volunteers who speak Spanish, Mandarin, Indian languages (Hindi, Punjabi, Gujarati), Bengali.
