Thread by @HispanicCaucus

Here are the facts directly from @OIGatHHS – Trump’s #FamilySeparation agenda traumatized children and caused lasting harm to their mental health.

#DontLookAway from what this administration is doing to innocent children.

Read the full report ⬇️
cnn.com/2019/09/04/pol…

@OIGatHHS .@HHSgov faced unique challenges in addressing the mental health needs of separated children, who suffered fear, abandonment, post-traumatic stress, & anxiety. Some cried uncontrollably from “acute grief.”

Of course they did – the Trump Admin tore these kids from their parents.

@OIGatHHS @HHSGov Stunningly, this report reveals that ORR staff did not know how to seek approval or consent to treat traumatized children with psychotropic medication. The lack of clarity on this process is unacceptable and disturbing.

@OIGatHHS @HHSGov Some children were “angry & confused” because they believed “their parents had abandoned them.” Others felt “fear or guilt & became concerned for their parents’ welfare.”

One child “was under the delusion that his father had been killed & believed that he would also be killed."

@OIGatHHS @HHSGov More and more children suffered as the Trump Admin enforced #FamilySeparation. Thousands of families were torn apart and HHS ORR’s resources were stretched to the breaking point. Often, counselors were caring for up to 25 children at a time, when the maximum should have been 12.

@OIGatHHS @HHSGov Children’s mental health deteriorated the longer they were in custody – they became defiant, hopeless, & frustrated, some experienced self-harm & suicidal ideation.

Instead of limiting their time, the Trump Admin added new requirements for sponsors, prolonging trauma.

@OIGatHHS @HHSGov Our government – driven by the Trump Admin’s intentional cruelty – is traumatizing children.

They must be stopped.

The Admin must answer for the families they’ve torn apart, the childhoods they’ve stolen, and the harm they inflicted.
#DontLookAway #JusticeForOurChildren