SUBSCRIBE TO OUR FREE NEWSLETTER
Daily news & progressive opinion—funded by the people, not the corporations—delivered straight to your inbox.
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
Members of a caravan of Central Americans who spent weeks traveling across Mexico walk from Mexico to the U.S. side of the border to ask authorities for asylum on April 29, 2018 in Tijuana, Baja California Norte, Mexico. (Photo: David McNew/Getty Images)
Senate Dems Demand 'Immediate Action' to Reunite Immigrant Families Torn Apart by Trump
"Leading medical experts have condemned family separations as causing children numerous—and in some cases lifelong—psychological and physical developmental harms."
Aug 15, 2018
Sen. Kamala Harris (D-Calif.), joined by 16 other Democrats and Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), sent a letter to Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen on Tuesday demanding "immediate action" to reunite the immigrant families torn apart and detained under the Trump administration's "zero tolerance" policy.
"Each passing day that DHS fails to act to reunite separated immigrant children with their parents unacceptably exacerbates trauma that this administration has needlessly caused for children and their families seeking humanitarian protection."
--Senate Democrats' letterMore than 500 immigrant children remain separated from their parents--many of whom already have been deported--despite a June federal court order requiring the administration to reunite all families by July 26. Since the administration missed that deadline, immigrant rights groups and critical lawmakers have, as the letter (pdf) puts it, expressed "extreme frustration" over the prolonged separation.
"Each passing day that DHS fails to act to reunite separated immigrant children with their parents unacceptably exacerbates trauma that this administration has needlessly caused for children and their families seeking humanitarian protection," the letter declares, noting that "leading medical experts have condemned family separations as causing children numerous--and in some cases lifelong--psychological and physical developmental harms."
The letter presents Nielsen three solutions to speed up the process:
- DHS should use humanitarian parole to reunify families with deported parents abroad;
- DHS should adopt a presumption of reunification for families with parents now deemed "ineligible"; and
- DHS should ensure that no parents who relinquished their rights to reunification under coercion or duress are removed.
More than 70 percent of the 539 children that remain in government custody, according to the letter, are there because their parents have been deported, and "many such parents are now hiding in their home countries from the very persecutors they fled in coming to the United States to seek protection"--hence the suggestion that DHS offer these parents humanitarian parole.
Another 87 children's parents have been deemed "ineligible" for reunification, yet in many cases, "the government has failed to provide detailed information regarding its allegations." The letter demands that the agency immediately provide such details, and provide parents the opportunity to offer a rebuttal, with the help of an attorney.
The remaining 34 children are in custody because their parents relinquished their right to reunification. The letter states that lawmakers are "alarmed" by allegations which the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) has put forth in court that Trump officials misled or coerced these parents to sign such waivers ahead of their deportation.
"In sum, we strongly urge DHS to take all available actions--as quickly as possible--to reunify all families that have been separated for an unacceptably long time as a result of this administration's zero tolerance policy," the letter concludes.
In addition to Harris and Sanders, the letter was also signed by Democratic Sens. Michael Bennet (Colo.), Richard Blumenthal (Conn.), Cory Booker (N.J.), Catherine Cortez Masto (Nev.), Tammy Duckworth (Ill.), Dianne Feinstein (Calif.), Kirsten Gillibrand (N.Y.), Mazie Hirono (Hawaii), Patrick Leahy (Vt.), Robert Menendez (N.J.), Jeff Merkley (Ore.), Bill Nelson (Fla.), Tina Smith (Minn.), Elizabeth Warren (Mass.), and Sheldon Whitehouse (R.I.).
An Urgent Message From Our Co-Founder
Dear Common Dreams reader, It’s been nearly 30 years since I co-founded Common Dreams with my late wife, Lina Newhouser. We had the radical notion that journalism should serve the public good, not corporate profits. It was clear to us from the outset what it would take to build such a project. No paid advertisements. No corporate sponsors. No millionaire publisher telling us what to think or do. Many people said we wouldn't last a year, but we proved those doubters wrong. Together with a tremendous team of journalists and dedicated staff, we built an independent media outlet free from the constraints of profits and corporate control. Our mission has always been simple: To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. Building Common Dreams was not easy. Our survival was never guaranteed. When you take on the most powerful forces—Wall Street greed, fossil fuel industry destruction, Big Tech lobbyists, and uber-rich oligarchs who have spent billions upon billions rigging the economy and democracy in their favor—the only bulwark you have is supporters who believe in your work. But here’s the urgent message from me today. It's never been this bad out there. And it's never been this hard to keep us going. At the very moment Common Dreams is most needed, the threats we face are intensifying. We need your support now more than ever. We don't accept corporate advertising and never will. We don't have a paywall because we don't think people should be blocked from critical news based on their ability to pay. Everything we do is funded by the donations of readers like you. When everyone does the little they can afford, we are strong. But if that support retreats or dries up, so do we. Will you donate now to make sure Common Dreams not only survives but thrives? —Craig Brown, Co-founder |
Our work is licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). Feel free to republish and share widely.
Sen. Kamala Harris (D-Calif.), joined by 16 other Democrats and Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), sent a letter to Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen on Tuesday demanding "immediate action" to reunite the immigrant families torn apart and detained under the Trump administration's "zero tolerance" policy.
"Each passing day that DHS fails to act to reunite separated immigrant children with their parents unacceptably exacerbates trauma that this administration has needlessly caused for children and their families seeking humanitarian protection."
--Senate Democrats' letterMore than 500 immigrant children remain separated from their parents--many of whom already have been deported--despite a June federal court order requiring the administration to reunite all families by July 26. Since the administration missed that deadline, immigrant rights groups and critical lawmakers have, as the letter (pdf) puts it, expressed "extreme frustration" over the prolonged separation.
"Each passing day that DHS fails to act to reunite separated immigrant children with their parents unacceptably exacerbates trauma that this administration has needlessly caused for children and their families seeking humanitarian protection," the letter declares, noting that "leading medical experts have condemned family separations as causing children numerous--and in some cases lifelong--psychological and physical developmental harms."
The letter presents Nielsen three solutions to speed up the process:
- DHS should use humanitarian parole to reunify families with deported parents abroad;
- DHS should adopt a presumption of reunification for families with parents now deemed "ineligible"; and
- DHS should ensure that no parents who relinquished their rights to reunification under coercion or duress are removed.
More than 70 percent of the 539 children that remain in government custody, according to the letter, are there because their parents have been deported, and "many such parents are now hiding in their home countries from the very persecutors they fled in coming to the United States to seek protection"--hence the suggestion that DHS offer these parents humanitarian parole.
Another 87 children's parents have been deemed "ineligible" for reunification, yet in many cases, "the government has failed to provide detailed information regarding its allegations." The letter demands that the agency immediately provide such details, and provide parents the opportunity to offer a rebuttal, with the help of an attorney.
The remaining 34 children are in custody because their parents relinquished their right to reunification. The letter states that lawmakers are "alarmed" by allegations which the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) has put forth in court that Trump officials misled or coerced these parents to sign such waivers ahead of their deportation.
"In sum, we strongly urge DHS to take all available actions--as quickly as possible--to reunify all families that have been separated for an unacceptably long time as a result of this administration's zero tolerance policy," the letter concludes.
In addition to Harris and Sanders, the letter was also signed by Democratic Sens. Michael Bennet (Colo.), Richard Blumenthal (Conn.), Cory Booker (N.J.), Catherine Cortez Masto (Nev.), Tammy Duckworth (Ill.), Dianne Feinstein (Calif.), Kirsten Gillibrand (N.Y.), Mazie Hirono (Hawaii), Patrick Leahy (Vt.), Robert Menendez (N.J.), Jeff Merkley (Ore.), Bill Nelson (Fla.), Tina Smith (Minn.), Elizabeth Warren (Mass.), and Sheldon Whitehouse (R.I.).
Sen. Kamala Harris (D-Calif.), joined by 16 other Democrats and Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), sent a letter to Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen on Tuesday demanding "immediate action" to reunite the immigrant families torn apart and detained under the Trump administration's "zero tolerance" policy.
"Each passing day that DHS fails to act to reunite separated immigrant children with their parents unacceptably exacerbates trauma that this administration has needlessly caused for children and their families seeking humanitarian protection."
--Senate Democrats' letterMore than 500 immigrant children remain separated from their parents--many of whom already have been deported--despite a June federal court order requiring the administration to reunite all families by July 26. Since the administration missed that deadline, immigrant rights groups and critical lawmakers have, as the letter (pdf) puts it, expressed "extreme frustration" over the prolonged separation.
"Each passing day that DHS fails to act to reunite separated immigrant children with their parents unacceptably exacerbates trauma that this administration has needlessly caused for children and their families seeking humanitarian protection," the letter declares, noting that "leading medical experts have condemned family separations as causing children numerous--and in some cases lifelong--psychological and physical developmental harms."
The letter presents Nielsen three solutions to speed up the process:
- DHS should use humanitarian parole to reunify families with deported parents abroad;
- DHS should adopt a presumption of reunification for families with parents now deemed "ineligible"; and
- DHS should ensure that no parents who relinquished their rights to reunification under coercion or duress are removed.
More than 70 percent of the 539 children that remain in government custody, according to the letter, are there because their parents have been deported, and "many such parents are now hiding in their home countries from the very persecutors they fled in coming to the United States to seek protection"--hence the suggestion that DHS offer these parents humanitarian parole.
Another 87 children's parents have been deemed "ineligible" for reunification, yet in many cases, "the government has failed to provide detailed information regarding its allegations." The letter demands that the agency immediately provide such details, and provide parents the opportunity to offer a rebuttal, with the help of an attorney.
The remaining 34 children are in custody because their parents relinquished their right to reunification. The letter states that lawmakers are "alarmed" by allegations which the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) has put forth in court that Trump officials misled or coerced these parents to sign such waivers ahead of their deportation.
"In sum, we strongly urge DHS to take all available actions--as quickly as possible--to reunify all families that have been separated for an unacceptably long time as a result of this administration's zero tolerance policy," the letter concludes.
In addition to Harris and Sanders, the letter was also signed by Democratic Sens. Michael Bennet (Colo.), Richard Blumenthal (Conn.), Cory Booker (N.J.), Catherine Cortez Masto (Nev.), Tammy Duckworth (Ill.), Dianne Feinstein (Calif.), Kirsten Gillibrand (N.Y.), Mazie Hirono (Hawaii), Patrick Leahy (Vt.), Robert Menendez (N.J.), Jeff Merkley (Ore.), Bill Nelson (Fla.), Tina Smith (Minn.), Elizabeth Warren (Mass.), and Sheldon Whitehouse (R.I.).
We've had enough. The 1% own and operate the corporate media. They are doing everything they can to defend the status quo, squash dissent and protect the wealthy and the powerful. The Common Dreams media model is different. We cover the news that matters to the 99%. Our mission? To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. How? Nonprofit. Independent. Reader-supported. Free to read. Free to republish. Free to share. With no advertising. No paywalls. No selling of your data. Thousands of small donations fund our newsroom and allow us to continue publishing. Can you chip in? We can't do it without you. Thank you.