HomeMy WebLinkAboutAgenda - 12-01-2014 - 4cORANGE COUNTY
BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS
ACTION AGENDA ITEM ABSTRACT
Meeting Date: December 1, 2014
Action Agenda
Item No. 4 -c
SUBJECT: Resolution in Support of Eaual Access for Immiarant Children
DEPARTMENT: Housing, Human Rights, and PUBLIC HEARING: (Y /N) No
Community Development
ATTACHMENT(S):
Resolution in Support of Equal Access for
Immigrant Children
1
INFORMATION CONTACT:
James Davis, (919) 245 -2488
Commissioner Mark Dorosin, (919)
245 -2130
PURPOSE: To adopt a resolution declaring that Orange County, North Carolina, is a
welcoming community in support of equal access to the fundamental right of public education,
basic health care, and the protection of law enforcement for immigrant children.
BACKGROUND: The United States Civil Rights Act of 1964 provides certain rights and
protections to all children regardless of their nation of origin. To wit, Title IV prohibits
discrimination with regard to a child's equal access to a basic public elementary and secondary
education regardless of their actual or perceived race, color, national origin, citizenship,
immigration status, or the status of their parents /guardians. The Department of Justice provides
guidance stating that school districts that either prohibit or discourage, or maintain policies that
have the effect of prohibiting or discouraging, children from enrolling in schools because they or
their parents /guardians are not U.S. citizens or are undocumented may be in violation of
Federal law.
The American Immigration Council has compiled resources that explain why there has been a
recent influx of unaccompanied children fleeing to the United States from South American
countries. Reports show that the reasons include extreme poverty, crime, gang threats, or
violence. According to these reports, the majority of Salvadoran girls reported fear of rape or
disappearance at the hands of gangs as their reason for emigrating.
The Orange County Board of County Commissioners has asserted that the right to public
education, access to basic health care and the protection of law are human rights that should
be availed to every child without discrimination (in intent or effect) based on national origin. The
Board of Commissioners, therefore, desires Orange County, North Carolina, to be a welcoming
community where public education, health care and the protection of law is available to
immigrant youth.
FINANCIAL IMPACT: There is no direct financial impact resulting from the adoption of the
resolution. However, there may be a financial impact associated with the County's
departments' efforts to make services and resources available to help welcome children into the
community who are seeking refuge from violence in their home countries.
RECOMMENDATION(S): The Manager recommends the Board adopt and authorize the Chair
to sign the Resolution in Support of Equal Access for Immigrant Children.
RES- 2014 -079
ORANGE COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS
RESOLUTION IN SUPPORT OF EQUAL ACCESS FOR IMMIGRANT CHILDREN
WHEREAS, Orange County, North Carolina, is a compassionate and caring community that is
committed to creating a welcoming atmosphere that values equality and social justice; and
WHEREAS, the number of unaccompanied children and minors from Central American nations
seeking refuge in the United States has dramatically risen over the last three years; and
WHEREAS, the vast majority of the children seeking refuge in the United States are fleeing
extreme violence and poverty, including from Guatemala, El Salvador, and Honduras; and
WHEREAS, Honduras is the country with the world's highest murder rate, while El Salvador's
murder rate is the fourth highest in the world; and
WHEREAS, the majority of the children entering the United States are returning to parents or
other family members who are present in the United States, including those children coming to
North Carolina; and
WHEREAS, approximately 1,429 of these children have been placed in North Carolina since
January 2014; and
WHEREAS, those children arriving in our community have the right under the United States
Constitution to equal access to a public education, basic health care, and the protection of law
enforcement;
NOW THEREFORE, be it resolved that the Orange County Board of Commissioners hereby:
• Affirms that Orange County is a welcoming community to children seeking
refuge from violence in their home countries and to the sponsors of these
children;
• Affirms the rights of children to attend public schools and to access basic health
care in the county they reside, without regards to their immigration status;
• Urges our congressional representatives, the Obama Administration, the
Department of Homeland Security, and Governor Pat McCrory to ensure that the
thousands of minors seeking safety within our borders and being apprehended by
Border Patrol receive due process and legal representation in court hearings;
• Directs the County Manager and all county departments to make services and
resources available to help welcome children into our community who are seeking
refuge from violence in their home countries;
• Encourages continuing collaboration between Orange County and other local
governmental entities and advocacy organizations to support and protect these
children; and
• Directs the Chair of the Board and the Clerk to forward this Resolution to each of
the local governments in Orange County, including both Boards of Education, and
respectfully requests that each consider adopting similar resolutions, and also
forward this resolution to our state legislative delegation, and to the North
Carolina Association of Counties.
ADOPTED THIS THE P DAY OF DECEMBER, 2014.
Chair
Orange County Board of Commissioners
K