There has been a recent surge of unaccompanied minors arriving in the
United States. This fiscal year, as of June 15, approximately 52,000
unaccompanied children have been apprehended along the Southwest border. That’s double
the
26,000
figure from the same time period
in fiscal year 2013.
We have a current law known as the William
Wilberforce Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act of 2008 which allows for the expedited deportation of most child
migrants from Mexico and Canada when they are apprehended at the border. But there
is a complex resettlement process for other children and the William Wilberforce law only pertains to
unaccompanied minors that come from countries that border the U.S. Most of the
influx of undocumented, unaccompanied minors are from Guatemala, El Salvador, and Honduras.
The Department of Human & Health Services takes custody and provides care for unaccompanied foreign children who illegally enter the United States from countries that do not border the United States. These children from Guatemala, El Salvador, and Honduras are first held at Border Patrol facilities for a maximum of 72 hours for screening. After that, the DHS (Department of Homeland Security) must hand them over to the Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR) for placement under its Unaccompanied Alien Children (UAC) program. Options may include foster care, living with a relative in the United States (if available), or deportation back to the child’s home country. The concern lies in the what the children may endure and encounter during their migration – they are frequently trafficked, robbed, sexually assaulted and exploited by smugglers, traffickers, gangs, cartels and even government authorities. Another concern lies in the statement made by Attorney General Eric Holder who recently said that many children “are fleeing violence, persecution, abuse and trafficking” particularly in regard to the violence taking place in Central America. Are the current policies taking all of these factors into consideration? Are the human rights of the children who are traveling into the U.S. being upheld at all costs?
The Department of Human & Health Services takes custody and provides care for unaccompanied foreign children who illegally enter the United States from countries that do not border the United States. These children from Guatemala, El Salvador, and Honduras are first held at Border Patrol facilities for a maximum of 72 hours for screening. After that, the DHS (Department of Homeland Security) must hand them over to the Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR) for placement under its Unaccompanied Alien Children (UAC) program. Options may include foster care, living with a relative in the United States (if available), or deportation back to the child’s home country. The concern lies in the what the children may endure and encounter during their migration – they are frequently trafficked, robbed, sexually assaulted and exploited by smugglers, traffickers, gangs, cartels and even government authorities. Another concern lies in the statement made by Attorney General Eric Holder who recently said that many children “are fleeing violence, persecution, abuse and trafficking” particularly in regard to the violence taking place in Central America. Are the current policies taking all of these factors into consideration? Are the human rights of the children who are traveling into the U.S. being upheld at all costs?
Here are some recent links to news on unaccompanied minors:
http://www.migrationpolicy.org/article/dramatic-surge-arrival-unaccompanied-children-has-deep-roots-and-no-simple-solutions
http://www.migrationpolicy.org/article/dramatic-surge-arrival-unaccompanied-children-has-deep-roots-and-no-simple-solutions
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