Immigration at the Border
Why Our Humanitarian Obligations to Children Crossing the Border Still Matter
Last summer, the flow of Central Americans seeking refuge in the United States—many of them children—reached its height. One of the government’s first responses to the increased numbers was to reinstitute family detention, with the opening of a makeshift facility in Artesia, New Mexico, one year ago tomorrow. Today, the… Read More
Members of Congress Report on Texas Family Detention Center Visits
Earlier this week, eight Democratic House Members took a trip to Dilley and Karnes, Texas to visit two immigrant family detention facilities and meet with women and children detained there. Dozens of women demonstrated during the visit, using sheets and pillow cases to make their statements. One five-year-old boy held… Read More
Border Patrol Criminally Prosecuting Asylum Seekers, Government Report Finds
For years, the Border Patrol program “Operation Streamline” has criminally prosecuted asylum seekers in a terribly misguided effort to discourage them from reentering illegally again. A recent U.S. government report from DHS’ Office of Inspector General (OIG) said this practice may “violate U.S. treaty obligations.” Specifically, according to the… Read More
Immigrants Kept for Days in Border Patrol’s Bedless Holding Cells
Every day, over a thousand individuals are held in Border Patrol detention facilities near the U.S. southern border. These facilities are notorious for freezing cold temperatures, overcrowded conditions and lack of any bedding or beds. In addition, they routinely lack adequate food, water, and medical care. The reality is… Read More
Immigrants Held for Days in Freezing, Unsanitary Cells File Class-Action Lawsuit
Washington D.C. — Tucson Sector Border Patrol holds men, women, and children in freezing, overcrowded, and filthy cells for extended periods of time in violation of the U.S. Constitution, a group of legal organizations allege in a class-action lawsuit filed Monday. The class-action suit, which was filed on behalf of two people… Read More
Calls to End Family Detention Come From Capitol Hill
Over the past year, the Obama Administration has rapidly propped up family detention facilities as a knee-jerk response to the influx of women and children who crossed our southern border last summer. The families fleeing violence and persecution have been apprehended, detained in poor conditions, and rapidly processed… Read More
Nebraska and Alabama Changing Their Stride on Immigration
In 2010 and 2011, Nebraska and Alabama made national headlines for their anti-immigrant measures. Fremont, Nebraska passed a local ordinance to check immigration status of renters, and Alabama passed HB 56, the most restrictive anti-immigrant state legislation in history. However in 2015, we’re seeing a changing tide in… Read More
California Leads the Transition in Pro-Immigrant State Lawmaking
In the last two decades, the state of California has transformed itself from a leader in anti-immigrant policymaking—most famously attempting to bar the undocumented from attending public schools and localizing immigration enforcement through Prop 187—to a leader in providing creative, forward-thinking policies on immigration. A new analysis by the… Read More
Court Reportedly Set to Order End to Detention of Children in Unlicensed Family Facilities
In February, advocates went to court to argue that the government’s family detention centers violate the long-standing Flores v. Reno settlement agreement, which set minimum standards for the detention, release and treatment of children subject to immigration detention. In response, government attorneys claimed that the Flores settlement… Read More
Two Moms Spend Mother’s Day Traveling to Immigration Family Detention Center
On Mother’s Day morning, we said goodbye to our own children in order to visit with some other moms—courageous Central American moms fleeing persecution and detained with their children in south Texas. The facility we visited in Dilley, Texas, under the supervision of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), is located… Read More
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