Thousands of migrant children in the United States now face increased exploitation risks after the Trump administration abruptly halted government-funded legal services meant to protect them. The administration ordered the Acacia Center for Justice, which oversees the main federal contract for these services, to “stop all work” immediately, affecting around 26,000 children in the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) custody.

Increased vulnerability without legal protection

The government has long funded nonprofit efforts to provide unaccompanied children with legal counsel, including help with asylum or visas applications. Cuts to federal funding will consequently force many nonprofits to forsake their essential work, such as vital “know your rights” sessions and legal screenings.

Migrant children now face even greater risks of exploitation, trafficking, and forced labor as a result. For the past few years, more than 250,000 unaccompanied migrant children have come to the United States. Thousands have ended up in the most dangerous jobs across the country: working overnight in slaughterhouses, replacing roofs, and operating machinery in factories – all in violation of child labor laws.

As reported by CBS News, Neha Desai, an attorney at the National Center for Youth Law, calls this move “reckless”  adding,

“Unaccompanied children who are unrepresented are far more likely to end up in exploitative situations, including child labor and trafficking.”

Shaina Aber, Executive Director of the Acacia Center for Justice, warned, “The due process rights of children will reach a new low.” Similarly, Lindsay Toczylowski, president of the Immigrant Defenders Law Center, also condemned the decision stating,

“The Trump administration is abandoning children for the sake of politics and leaving kids to fend for themselves against our complex immigration system.”

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