Consular Breakfast: The State of International Child Protection in Georgia

Georgia is growing more diverse by the day, with more than 10 percent of the population now born outside the country. For diplomats posted in Atlanta and beyond, that means greater responsibility, especially in safeguarding the rights of their most vulnerable constituents: children.

But with changing regulations, complex international laws, language barriers, and relational gaps between consulates and state agencies, navigating this landscape can grow challenging just when it’s most necessary.

Join The Manely Firm, Global Atlanta, the Georgia Division of Family and Children Services, and other experts at an in-person, interactive, invitation-only breakfast roundtable providing the latest on international child protection in Georgia and how consulates can improve their capacity for handling child welfare issues, long before they arise.

Interactive Panel/Speakers:

Tom Rawlings, commissioner of the Georgia Division of Family and Children Services — On the division’s ongoing outreach to the consular corps, its linguistic initiatives and joint training opportunities

Javier Diaz de Leon, Consul General of Mexico — On the recently renewed MOU between Georgia DFCS and the Consulate General of Mexico governing their collaboration on issues regarding Mexican minors

Michael Manely, Founding Attorney, The Manely Firm — On the latest developments regarding international child abduction, cross—border custody issues, and other family law considerations

Christina Iturralde Thomas, Managing Attorney – Atlanta,
Kids in Need of Defense (KIND) — On legal issues pertaining to unaccompanied minors in the United States

*invited

Moderated by: Trevor Williams, Managing Editor, Global Atlanta

Who should attend:

Consuls General
Honorary Consuls
Consular officials concerned with family welfare issues
Other foreign government representatives or local protocol professionals

Speaker Bios

Tom C. Rawlings was appointed in February 2019 by Gov. Brian P. Kemp to serve as Director of the State Division of Family and Children Services, where he supports the efforts of over 8,000 DFCS employees who protect Georgia’s most vulnerable children and assist the state’s struggling families. He previously served as Interim Director of the agency under Gov. Nathan Deal.

Prior to joining DFCS, Tom served as Georgia’s Child Advocate for the Protection of Children and helped lead efforts to improve our state’s child protection system. Governor Deal appointed him to the Office of the Child Advocate post in January 2017, and he also served as the Director of that agency from 2007-2010 under Governor Sonny Perdue. An honors graduate of both Duke University and the University of Georgia School of Law, he earned his Masters’ degree from Oxford University with distinction in International Human Rights Law.

From 2000-2007, he served as the first full-time juvenile court judge in the Middle Judicial Circuit, where he oversaw juvenile justice and child protection cases in five counties. After serving his first term as the state children’s ombudsman, Tom and his family moved to Guatemala in 2010, where he directed a child sexual abuse prosecution and treatment team as the country director for International Justice Mission.

Certified by the National Association of Counsel for Children as a child welfare law specialist, Tom is a former Fulbright Senior Specialist in Law and is the author of Georgia Child Welfare and Juvenile Justice: Policy, Practice and Procedure, updated regularly. A native of Sandersville, Tom and his wife, Kay, now live in Atlanta and have three sons.

Javier Díaz de León, Consul General of Mexico, holds a Bachelor’s degree in International Relations from the Universidad Iberoamericana and a Master of Arts in International Conflict Analysis from the University of Kent, in England.

Diaz is a member of the Mexican Foreign Service since 1991 and holds the rank of Ambassador since April 28th, 2017. During his diplomatic career he has held various positions: Deputy Consul General in San Diego; Deputy Consul General in New York, Head of the Office for Migration and Hispanic Affairs at the Embassy of Mexico in the United States, and Executive Director of the Institute for Mexicans Abroad of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Mexico City.

From June 2013 to May 2016 he served as Consul General of Mexico in Raleigh, North Carolina. In May 2016, he was appointed as Consul General of Mexico in Atlanta, Georgia, serving in this position since June 18th, 2016.

The Consulate General of Mexico in Atlanta oversees the states of Georgia, Alabama, and most of Tennessee.

Michael Manely has practiced divorce and family law for more than 28 years and has handled thousands of family law cases. He is admitted to practice in all Georgia courts and federal courts in the Northern and Middle District of Georgia, the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals and the United States Supreme Court. On December 5, 2012 he delivered oral argument before the Supreme Court of the United States in Chafin v. Chafin, securing a unanimous victory. Michael is the only all family law attorney to win a unanimous decision from the U.S. Supreme Court and the Supreme Court of Georgia. Michael has built a progressive practice and a reputation for winning difficult, controversial and high-profile cases. He has successfully represented thousands of mothers and fathers in state, federal and international divorce, custody and child support cases.

Christina Iturralde Thomas is the Managing Attorney of the Atlanta Field Office of Kids In Need of Defense (KIND). Christina helped open the office in December 2015 and has grown from a 3-member team to a now staff of 11 people. KIND’s staff and its pro bono attorney partners at law firms, corporations, and law schools represent unaccompanied immigrant and refugee children in their immigration proceedings. KIND’s mission is to ensure that no child stands in court alone.

Prior to joining KIND, Christina worked at the Latin American Association (LAA) as a Staff Attorney representing unaccompanied minors before the Atlanta Immigration Court and the USCIS Atlanta field office. Before that, she worked at Southern Poverty Law Center’s Immigrant Justice Project for two years and at LatinoJustice PRLDEF in New York for five years, defending the rights of immigrants through federal impact litigation.

Christina is a graduate of University of California, Hastings College of Law and has a Master’s in Political Science from the University of Florida. She is admitted to practice law in Georgia and New York.
Beyond work, Christina loves to travel (pre-pandemic) and cooking/baking. She and her husband are raising their now two-year-old daughter, hoping to instill in her a love of food, exploration, and learning.