Biden Administration: Uncage, Reunify, and Heal Migrant Children Separated at the Border!
President Biden and the Task Force on the Reunification of Families
Did you know that the Biden Administration made a promise to children that they haven’t kept?
In February 2021, President Biden established the President’s Interagency Task Force on the Reunification of Families (The Task Force) which includes the heads of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, U.S. Department of Justice, and the State Department.[1] One year later, according to the Task Force’s own report, there are still 1,000-1,500 children who remain separated[2] due to the 2018 Zero Tolerance Policy. Under the policy, adults who entered the U.S. through the U.S.-Mexico border were prosecuted for illegal entry and their children were not allowed to be incarcerated with them. Children were taken into federal custody resulting in thousands of children being separated from their parents.[3]
Despite campaigning against separation of migrant children from their families at the US-Mexico border, this administration has continued policies such as Title 42. In May of 2021, reports indicated that 20,000 unaccompanied children were in the Department of Health and Human Services' (HHS) custody.
Title 42 is a clause of the 1944 Public Health Services Law that "allows the government to prevent the introduction of individuals during certain public health emergencies." This clause has rarely been used over the last few decades and was issued as a public health order during the COVID-19 pandemic by the Trump administration.[4]
- CARECEN SF
- Galería de la Raza
- Chicana Latina Foundation
- Latinx Racial Equity Project
- Instituto Familiar de la Raza, Inc.
References:
- “Executive Order on the Establishment of Interagency Task Force on the Reunification of Families.” The White House. February 02, 2021.
- “Interim Progress Report: Interagency Task Force on the Reunification of Families.” Dept. of Homeland Security. November 29, 2021.
- Diaz, Jaclyn. “Justice Department Rescinds Trump's 'Zero Tolerance' Immigration Policy.” NPR. January 27, 2021.
- Garcia, Armando, Owen, Quinn, Zaru, Deena. “What is Title 42? Amid backlash, Biden administration defends use of Trump-era order to expel migrants.” ABC News. September 26, 2021.
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To:
President Biden and the Task Force on the Reunification of Families
From:
[Your Name]
In establishing the Interagency Task Force for the Reunification of Families, President Biden stated: “My Administration will protect family unity and ensure that children entering the United States are not separated from their families.”
President Biden and the Task Force on the Reunification of Families, we hold you to your promise and moral responsibility to immediately reunify all children separated from their families under the Zero Tolerance policy. A year later, per your own reports, 1,000-1,500 children remain separated from their families.
We demand:
• Swift action to uncage, reunify, and heal children separated from their families and loved ones.
• Transparency and accountability about the Task Force and the administration’s child reunification process.
• Allocation of the necessary resources in support of the families’ healing process from this trauma.
• End to immigrant detention and separation of families forced to migrate in search of refuge.
Time is up! #UncageReunifyHeal the children!
Sincerely,