Three days after freezing it, the administration turned the funding back on. On Friday, the Interior Department rescinded Tuesday's stop-work order that had cut off all federally funded legal services for unaccompanied migrant children, telling the Acacia Center for Justice it may "resume all activities" under its contract.
The advocates' case: about 26,000 children facing deportation — some just toddlers — rely on these lawyers. "To expect a child, especially a five- or six-year-old, to try and figure out their immigration case in a language that they don't speak, it's virtually impossible," said Wendy Young of Kids in Need of Defense. Acacia's Shaina Aber called the services "legal lifelines safeguarding the rights and well-being of children seeking safety" and pledged to work with Health and Human Services to fully restore them.
The administration hasn't publicly explained the reversal. The Friday notice simply "cancels" the order, with no stated reason — the same silence that surrounded Tuesday's freeze, which cited contracting rules. For now, the lawyers are back to work, and thousands of kids get their day in court with representation.