Family Defense

The Family Defense Center is a not-for profit organization whose mission is to advocate justice for families in the child welfare system. We advocate for families who need our help the most: families threatened with losing their children to foster care. Nothing is more painful for a child than to be taken from the only parents he or she knows. Yet, child protection systems throughout America frequently remove children from parents as a first resort, not a last resort. Many parents lose custody of their children to state foster care systems primarily because they are poor or because they are victims of abuse themselves. Far too many children in foster care bounce from home to home and are separated from siblings. Any family can be the victim of a false, harrassing, or misguided Hotline call.

Throughout America, families at risk of separation lack legal resources to mount adequate defenses against abuse or neglect charges even when they are innocent.

The Family Defense Center is the first of its kind: a legal advocacy organization that provides high level systemic advocacy and grass-roots activities for families treated unfairly by state child protection agencies. The Family Defense Center defends children who can be safely raised in their own families and helps families preserve their right to raise their own children. The Family Defense Center is a member-supported organization, deriving most of its funding from individual contributions. Please consider making a contribution today to help protect chldren by defending families.

Our Program Areas Are:

• Direct Legal Services
• Policy Advocacy
• Systemic/Civil Rights Litigation
• Parent Empowerment Program
• Training/Education/Family Defender Newsletter
• Pro Bono Legal

* Services are provided in our Direct Legal Services Program, Policy, Advocacy, Systemic/Civil Rights Ligitagation

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