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New: I spent some time with court records that offer an unprecedented look into the lives of kids being held at the Homestead Temporary Shelter for Unaccompanied Children: miaminewtimes.com/news/children-…
In written declarations, 75 children identified only by their initials described their journeys to the United States, their motivations for coming, and how they felt while detained.
They described harsh conditions at border facilities, where they were separated from their families: 
Several children said some of the guards at these facilities were cruel. One said they told her the U.S. government "didn't want Guatemalans, Hondurans or Salvadorans":
Two teenage girls said that while they were held at border facilities, they cared for babies who were separated from their parents. The girls did so even though they had just been taken from their own families:
Some of the children were fleeing violent gangs back home:
Among those fearful of gangs were teenage girls, who said they were being targeted by gang members:
At Homestead, they were told strict rules during orientation: no more than five minutes for showers, no talking to kids of the opposite sex, no touching of any kind — not even hugs or handshakes. Some found the no-hugging rule difficult:
But they feared breaking the rules because they would get a report. Some believed that the reports would go to a judge or the government, who would decide they were a "bad person":
A couple children described the shelter as prison-like:
One child said he was kept in a room alone for eight days:
Some kids spoke fondly of classes and recreation time at the shelter (which the federal government now plans to strip away). But many felt alone, and longed to be released to family.
Read the story: miaminewtimes.com/news/children-…
