Author: Mia (Page 3 of 8)

In summary, my study has led me to the conclusion that a significant amount of work needs to be done before immigrant children can have the right to a court appointed attorney. I discovered a lot of surprising facts while doing this research. It perplexed me to find that children as young as three attend these court proceedings without the presence of an adult figure or an attorney. Furthermore, I discovered that since Spanish is these children’s first language, they need a translator which they are not given access to. Since they are unable to understand the judge without the assistance of a translation, this could further complicate their situation. I now have a better knowledge of the struggles that these unaccompanied immigrant children genuinely face because of my research. What I’ve learnt is crucial, in my opinion, because immigrant children are defenseless when they travel alone to a new country and shouldn’t be turned away when they’re merely looking for a place to call home and live a better life for themselves. Since they lack the resources to do so, they shouldn’t be forced to search and pay for a lawyer. I think that lawyers, law students, translators, and government officials should be aware of this situation in order to assist these children and raise the public’s awareness of what is happening. This way, they can support the creation of improved laws and policies that will benefit these children. Since it is unreasonable to expect young kids to navigate and comprehend American laws—which are so complicated that even adults find them difficult to understand—these important authorities can offer to help these children. They have the ability to influence change, which is why I think my study is significant and can assist them in identifying the issue and attempting to resolve it in whichever manner they can.

I think that my RAB is doing well so far. I feel confident in my research and I believe my knowledge has definitely grown. I do feel a little worried about my final source entry because i feel like i could’ve went with a better source but i think that it was important to show a different perspective in order to further solidify my opinion. I feel the most proud about my first and second source entries. I think I might need a little help with my conclusion but I hope to get some feedback that can help me when we do peer review.

Freedman, L. (2018). UNACCOMPANIED: Alone in America [Video]. In YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6ztvPsJmIcU

Summary

This source is a video that was created to show what happens in the court room when immigrant children are attending a hearing. Since real court sessions can’t be filmed, this is a recreation to show what typically happens in a session. The video shows kids going up to their seat and getting headphones which are used so that they can hear the translation of what the judge is asking them. All the kids that were shown in the video speak Spanish only. The judge goes on to ask the children if they understand what the proceedings in court are about and if they know what a lawyer is and if they have one. In between the scenes that are shown, the video shows some facts and one of them said, “When children appear in immigration court alone, 9 out of 10 are ordered deported.” This is an important fact because it is proving further how the lack of a lawyer, can affect the lives of these immigrant children in court.

Rhetorical analysis

This source is a youtube video. The film-maker is called Linda freedman and the actors in the film are people who are a part of the Immigration Counseling Service (ICS) which is a non profit immigration law firm working to help individuals with no legal representation. The purpose of this film is to show people how foolish it is to make these unaccompanied minors go to court proceedings alone with no legal representation to help them navigate the American court system. It also aims to spur action and, ideally, attract the interest of experts who can assist these kids in overcoming their current situation. Kids as young as toddlers have to go to these court proceedings all alone with no help from a lawyer and no access to an interpreter which is no help since they can’t understand U.S. immigration laws which are very complex even for adults. While the film is very short, the content is very straight to the point and it is impactful. It shows very clearly what is happening in real immigration court proceedings and how these kids are put in a vulnerable position and have to deal with it all by themselves. A question I would like to ask Freedman is what made her want to create this film? Did she have a personal experience with an unaccompanied minor? I would like to know how the film came about.

This video further informs my research because the film is showing why lawyers should be appointed to immigrant minors. It shows how the kids in the court proceedings don’t understand or even know what a lawyer is or that they might need one. If the children don’t know what a lawyer is how are they expected to find one and hire one? There are toddlers going to these court proceedings which is preposterous in itself. They shouldn’t be responsible for having to find a lawyer and hiring one, these kids are risking their life coming to the U.S. in search of safety and a better life. They shouldn’t be going to these court proceedings all alone just to be told that they are getting deported back to the dangerous home they left behind. A quote in the video said, “When children are represented by a lawyer, immigration courts have allowed almost half to remain in the United States.” This is why it is important to appoint a lawyer to these children. It benefits them by allowing them to stay in the united states and it gives them the opportunity to live a better life.

Quotables

“Children arrested by the U.S. government have no right to court-appointed representation in immigration proceedings.” (1:31)

“The U.S. government is always represented by a lawyer.” (2:32)