Partnership to Help Low-income Immigrant Families in North Carolina
Durham, NC – The Southern Coalition for Social Justice (SCSJ) and the National Immigrant Bond Fund (NIBF) have formed a partnership to provide legal and bond assistance to persons arrested by local authorities and detained for removal proceedings.
The purpose of the joint project is to:
- Educate the public about the importance of getting out of immigration detention and obtaining an attorney to have a fair hearing;
- Call attention to the problems of local enforcement of immigration law; and
- Provide bond assistance to individuals who cannot otherwise afford to pay an immigration bond.
The Southern Coalition for Social Justice is one of few legal organizations in the south providing pro-bono legal support to immigrants facing deportation; this is particularly significant as undocumented immigrants are not entitled to indigent defense or legal counsel.
“We are very excited to partner with the National Immigrant Bond Fund – every week I see families whose lives are being torn apart because a father or brother was picked up on a minor and sometimes unsubstantiated charge - and because their immigration status is not current, they are put into removal proceedings without being able to see their families or tie up outstanding obligations. The Bond Fund will help us help more families,” said Marty Rosenbluth, immigration attorney at the Southern Coalition for Social Justice.
Bond Fund Chairperson Bob Hildreth states, “the Bond Fund works on a simple principle – we can provide up to 50% in matching funds to enable families to post bond for their loved one – we do this because we believe immigrant detainees should be afforded basic rights and that our current immigration laws are in urgent need of reform.”
“Through our partnership, families and communities come to SCSJ with their case, they raise 50% of the bond and apply for a match, and then we can give SCSJ the balance of the bond in the form of a 0% interest loan, which is repaid when the immigration case is completed.”
The National Immigrant Bond Fund (NIBF) is a project of Public Interest Projects, Inc. www.publicinterestprojects.org.
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Contact:
Marty Rosenbluth, SCSJ Immigration attorney (919) 323-3380x111 or Marty@SCSJ.org
Bob Hildreth, Chairperson, National Bond Fund (617) 423-0211 or rhildreth@ibsboston.com
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