EL PASO, Texas (KTSM) — Estrella del Paso, a local nonprofit that helps migrants with legal services, terminated two of its programs following a decision by the U.S. Department of Justice to stop funding the programs.
The termination of the Legal Orientation Program (LOP) and Immigration Court Helpdesk (ICH) took effect on Tuesday, April 15. These programs help people who are facing deportation understand their rights, officials with Estrella del Paso said.
“By terminating these types of programs that are aimed at educating people, it’s just going to make the immigration system a black hole,” Melissa M. Lopez, executive director of Estrella del Paso, said.
This is not the first time that the Justice Department has tried to stop these programs. The department issued a stop work order for both programs on Jan. 22.
Estrella del Paso joined partner organizations across the country in a federal lawsuit against the government. However, that litigation is still pending, officials said.
Lopez said there is concern that, with the absence of these programs, immigration courts could become more strained.
“We are not going to be able to provide these services, and people are going to go to court having no idea what they’re facing. And without, you know, that knowledge that they’re going to languish in detention longer, they’re going to go through these processes and it’s going to take longer,” Lopez said.
The decision to terminate the programs came weeks after the government cut off legal representation to unaccompanied children, which led to 18 employees from Estrella del Paso being furloughed, officials said.
Officials added that funding cuts and staff losses are taking a toll on their ability to serve the community.
“When you think about the tens of thousands of cases that are currently pending before the immigration court in El Paso, and you think about the fact that we have a four-person attorney team right now,” Lopez said.
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