Last week my diary was regarding the treatment of women in immigration detention centers, specifically issues with reproductive health. This week, keeping with the theme of mistreatment of immigrants in US detention centers and the novel The Leavers by Ko, I want to bring up the topic of undocumented minors. It has been a hot topic in the news since the Biden administration has taken office that the number of unaccompanied minors in US detention centers. In the novel, Deming, the young man was taken to child services and left by a friend after his mother left him with her. What the children are experiencing today is much different than Deming’s experience. These children are left unattended by their guardians at the Mexican and the US will not turn away an unaccompanied minor. There has been a huge influx of over 10,000 children left at the US and Mexico border in the past few months (bbc.com, 2021). In my opinion the US is doing the best they can with what they have but there are people that believe the US is doing these children an injustice because they are in confined buildings where they cannot social distance, they are not be fed properly, and they are not getting the care they deserve but these children’s families did them an injustice (bbc.com, 2021). They brought them to an unfamiliar place and left them. I understand that they brought them here for a better life, safety or more opportunity but there is no guarantee that any of this will happen. These children have had an injustice on both sides of the border.
The law is that unaccompanied minors are held by Customs and Border Control(CBP) for no more than 72 hours and then released to the refugee department for further processing and possibly being placed with a volunteer sponsor or family relatives here in the United States. (Montoya-Galvez, 2021). Since the influx of children started in January, the process has been delayed and children are being held by CBP longer than the law allows and to some, they are being treated unjustly.
“What Is Happening with Migrant Children at the Southern US Border?” BBC News, BBC, 17 Mar. 2021, www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-56405009
Montoya-Galvez, Camilo. “The Facts about How the U.S. Processes Unaccompanied Migrant Children at the Border.” CBS News, CBS Interactive, 2021, www.cbsnews.com/news/unaccompanied-migrant-children-united-states-processing-housing/