Press Releases
HHS Ruling Targets LGBTQ Youth During Public Health Crisis
This afternoon, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced a final rule change that will end data collection regarding the sexual orientation of foster children and foster and adoptive parents in the Adoption and Foster Care Analysis and Reporting System (AFCARS). Christina Wilson Remlin, lead counsel at Children’s Rights, who recently spoke […]
Motion to Dismiss Denied in South Carolina Discrimination Case
Yesterday, a South Carolina judge denied defendants’ motion to dismiss in a case brought last year by Lambda Legal and the ACLU of South Carolina against the US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) on behalf of a married lesbian couple, Eden Rogers and Brandy Welch. The couple was turned away by a government-funded […]
April 16, 2020The response from states to release juveniles from detention centers during the COVID-19 pandemic has been met with resistance. The New York Times published an article this week, ‘Pacing and Praying’: Jailed Youths Seek Release as Virus Spreads. Sandy Santana, Executive Director of Children’s Rights, issues a response to the conditions and adverse health risk […]
April 9, 2020Children’s Rights Calls for Urgent Policy Changes Amidst COVID-19 Crisis
In response to the COVID-19 emergency, Sandy Santana, executive director of Children’s Rights, issued the following statement regarding youth held in jail, detention centers, foster care group homes, and institutions: “We need to prioritize the health and safety of our children, which is why we’re calling for urgent state and municipal policy changes now starting […]
March 31, 2020Court Holds Iowa Liable for Violating Constitutional Rights of Children in State Detention Federal Judge Rules State’s Treatment of Boys “Shocks the Conscience”
Children’s Rights—Camilla Jenkins, 646-216-3311, cjenkins@childrensrights.org (March 30, 2020 — Des Moines, IA) – Today, a federal judge has issued a powerful decision in C.P.X. v. Garcia (formerly known as C.P.X. v. Foxhoven), a class action lawsuit brought against the Boys State Training School (BSTS) in Eldora, Iowa. Federal Judge Stephanie M. Rose holds the State […]
March 19, 2020Children’s Rights Statement on Discrimination Case Challenging the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services
In response to a lawsuit filed today on behalf of Family Equality, True Colors United, and SAGE, against the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services, Christina Wilson Remlin, Lead Counsel at Children’s Rights, issued the following statement: “We applaud this move to hold HHS accountable. The administration’s attempt to nationalize a taxpayer-funded license to […]
March 18, 2020Federal Ruling Supports the Rights of Detained Youth to Receive Education Services
Contact: Camilla Jenkins, 646-216-3311; cjenkins@childrensrights.org (ATLANTA) – On March 11, a federal court in Atlanta set an important precedent that can have state-wide implications on special education resources in jails. The court denied a motion to dismiss for failure to state a claim from DeKalb County Sheriff Melody Mattox, in response to a suit filed […]
March 16, 2020Children’s Rights Urges Swift Action to Protect Incarcerated Young People
In response to Dr. Amanda Klonsky’s opinion piece published in the New York Times today regarding the risk that COVID-19 poses in our nation’s jails and prisons, Sandy Santana, executive director of Children’s Rights, issued the following statement: “With schools closing and colleges sending students home, New York City must not ignore the health and well-being of youth […]
March 4, 2020Monitoring Report in South Carolina: Productive and Promising, but More Work to Be Done
CONTACT: Camilla Jenkins at 646-216-3311; cjenkins@childrensrights.org (Charleston, S.C.) — The latest Monitoring Report on the progress of the South Carolina Department of Social Services (DSS) in satisfying its obligations outlined in the Final Settlement Agreement (FSA) entered in the Michelle H., et al. v. McMaster and Leach systemic reform case, has been released. The report […]
February 28, 2020Georgia Bill Would Harm Innocent Children
Yesterday, Georgia lawmakers again proposed a bill that, if passed, would harm vulnerable transgender and gender nonconforming children. Ironically, the bill is called the “Vulnerable Youth Protection Act”. If passed, the bill would ban accepted and expected medical care to Georgia’s transitioning youth. Specifically, the bill would make it a felony for any licensed medical […]
