Unaccompanied Immigrant Children in the United States:
Considerations and Resources for Play Therapists
C
| LISA LARRABEE,MSW,LCSW, RPT-S™
hildren under age 18 who enter the United States without legal status and without a parent or guardian
are referred to as “unaccompanied children.” Unaccompanied or child abuse. While some unaccompanied children may have family or caregivers waiting in the United States; others are alone. Many are eligible for legal immigration status but have not established that status at the time of entry. Unaccompanied children live in foster care settings throughout the United States until an appropriate caregiver is vetted or until the youth can attain legal status as an unaccompanied refugee minor, remaining in foster care but under year 118,938 unaccompanied immigrant children received foster
4 | PLAYTHERAPY December 2024 |
www.a4pt.org
and almost 9 out of 10 come from Mexico or Central America (US Department of Health & Human Services, 2023).
Why Provide Play Therapy to Unaccompanied Immigrant Children? of expression and skill-building for trauma survivors are well- documented (See, e.g., Goodyear-Brown, 2019; Gil, 2011). Youth in al., 2023). Forcibly displaced children who come to the United States may be markedly different from their clinician in terms of cultural milieu, language, or dialect, even if the therapist is bilingual. Play and play-based activities can provide a universal pathway through these differences. Many unaccompanied immigrant youth have had
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