Thread by @RAICESTEXAS

Today our Director of Released Children’s Services is visiting the Carrizo Springs detention center along with members of Congress. We're currently providing the kids detained there with legal services.

As RAICES, we’ve been at the frontlines of this issue for many years.🧵👇🏽

Let us be clear: There is no “security crisis” or “surge” at the border. The situation we are facing is nothing new. Child migration and the numbers of kids we're seeing enter through the border is not unprecedented, unusual or surprising. Statistically this was very predictable.

The number of children coming into the US changes depending on the time of year.

This is normal. This is expected. This is something the government can prepare for.

washingtonpost.com/politics/2021/…

As a country, we have two choices to address the humanitarian challenge we have in front of us.

We can build a system that terrorizes and dehumanizes people seeking asylum (including children), as Trump was doing to "send a message".

Or we step up to the challenge and build a system to welcome them. The answer should be a no-brainer.

Right now, what we ARE concerned about, is the constant use of Emergency Reception Centers.

Health and Human Services, who takes custody of unaccompanied children coming to the US, usually cannot abide by the standard of “protective environment” set by the law for these ERCs.

This means these detention facilities are unacceptable places to detain children.

What’s even more concerning, is that these centers, while technically under HHS, the CHILDREN inside them are being targeted for deportation by ICE.

It’s how our immigration system is set up. It’s set up to deport children.

We need to meet the current challenge we have in front of us in a way that honors the children’s human dignity.

The Biden administration must;

✅Ensure no child is detained in CBP custody;
✅Work towards immediately closing down all the influx centers & “decompression” facilities;

✅Allow families to reunite with children immediately and without fear of enforcement, or to coordinate for their rapid reunification by government-facilitated travel to their sponsors in the U.S.;
✅Treat kids as they would refugees and remove them from deportation proceedings.

In the long term, we must create the systems and infrastructure to welcome asylum seekers and ensure we are addressing the push factors that are displacing families and forcing people to leave their homes to seek home and safety in the U.S.

We at RAICES know who these children are and where they come from. We know their stories and we won’t stop until we as a country see them for who they are; human beings seeking a better life for them and their families.