Support Calls for Kids
Tell the CA Assembly to keep AB 2015 moving, so parents who are arrested or detained can arrange for the well-being of their child.
Laura Sanchez from CARECEN speaks about
the heartbreak mamas and kids face
when separated by deportation.
Click to watch video
Imagine a child whose parent doesn't come home from work because of an immigration raid or an arrest. Imagine the parent who is arrested and wants to ensure their child is with a relative or friend, but is prevented from making a phone call.
Calls for Kids (AB 2015 – Mitchell) gives parents in California the ability to make arrangements for their child at the moment of arrest.
Once separated, bringing families back together and avoiding legal separation becomes more difficult. It is more expensive for state and local governments when children are unnecessarily placed in the custody of child protective services or foster care. Let's take care of families at the point of arrest and save unnecessarily cost and heartache in the future.
Right now, Calls for Kids is caught up in the legislative process, and we need to act to make sure children don't end up in child protective services if they have another option.
This bill is sponsored by California Latinas for Reproductive Justice and Forward Together.
Please join us and mamas across the state in urging the California Assembly to keep this bill moving!
Read the full text of the petition.
More information on AB 2015.
If you're an organization that wants to support the bill,
please download this sample support letter,
print on letterhead and fax it by COB Tuesday, May 15th to:
Assemblymember Mitchell's office: 916-319-2047
Assemblymember Fuentes, Chair of Assembly Approps: 916-319-2181
Dear California Assembly Member,
We urge you to move AB 2015 out of suspension and into full passage through the appropriations committee.
The time of arrest is a critical juncture, during which the physical and emotional well-being of the arrestee's child and the long-term legal rights of the parent-child relationship are at risk. AB 2015 ensures that custodial parents, regardless of their immigration status or language proficiency, can arrange for the care of their children at the time of arrest and retain some contact with their child's caregiver.
In 2001, 13% of all felony arrests in California involved single parents of minor children. As a result of the current system, children of parents who are detained and deported have become one of the newest growing populations of children in foster care.
The long-term costs of inaction far outweigh the initial investment to ensure that parents and children benefit from the strengthening and implementation of existing law.
Current gaps in laws and policies, and inconsistencies in their application, lead to children being unnecessarily placed in the custody of child protective services, placed with strangers in foster care systems, and ultimately, legally separated from a parent. Once separated, the barriers to reunification increase, and an already traumatizing situation for a child becomes all the more devastating, as well as more expensive to state and local government.
Please act now to support safer children and stronger families. Calls for Kids is a smart investment in our communities. Prioritize AB 2015 by supporting full passage through the appropriations committee.
Sincerely,
Your Name
