Family Detention
When Detention Is a Death Sentence
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is pursuing a massive increase in resources for immigrant detention centers, a fundamentally flawed network of largely privatized and remote facilities used to hold immigrants. Yet this already unwieldy system has a concerning history of abuses and substandard conditions, which would likely only… Read More
The United States’ Undocumented Population Has Been on the Decline Since 2010
With approximately 11 million undocumented immigrants currently living in the United States, curbing unauthorized immigration has been at the forefront of the Trump administration’s enforcement priorities. Yet new data shows that a heightened focus on this population may be misguided, as the number of undocumented immigrants… Read More
Oversight Agency Finds ICE Improperly Obtained Contract for Texas Family Detention Center
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Office of the Inspector General (OIG) released a damning report this week, finding that U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) improperly modified an older, existing contract with the City of Eloy, Arizona to create the notorious… Read More
Decoding the White House Immigration Framework
After President Trump ended the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) initiative, he instructed Congress to pass legislation to protect Dreamers. However, Congress had to wait for direction from the White House on what type of legislation the president would sign into law. Finally, on Thursday, his administration released their… Read More
Government Shuts Down While Negotiations Continue on Dream Act, but Most Immigration Functions Continue
With the national conversation focused squarely on Dreamers, Congress was unable to find common ground on a budget deal and has shut down the U.S. Government. Congressional leadership decided not to bring a vote on bipartisan Dream Act legislation. Instead, this was the fourth time in as many months that… Read More
Nativists Can’t Back Up Their Claims on Immigration and Crime
Social scientists have concluded that immigrants are far less likely than the native-born to commit serious criminal offenses or end up behind bars. More than one hundred years of research has firmly established this fact. Yet nativists still claim that undocumented immigrants pose a threat to public safety and… Read More
Three Year Anniversary of Family Detention Center Is Sad Reminder of America’s Cruelest Immigration Policy Practice
December marks the three-year anniversary of the opening of the country’s largest family detention center for non-citizen mothers and their minor children located in Dilley, Texas. Referred to as a “baby jail” since it holds children under one year of age there, the opening of the Dilley family detention center… Read More
The Government Continues to Ignore the Rights of Children in Detention, Court Finds
Despite being among some of the most vulnerable, children seeking asylum in the United States often fare the worst. Upon entering the United States, children are often detained for extended periods in violation of a long-standing agreement known as the Flores settlement. The Flores agreement essentially acts as a contract… Read More
Immigration and Customs Enforcement Continues to Inhibit Asylum Seekers’ Legal Access and Invite Litigation
Since the reintroduction of family detention under the Obama administration, abuse of the mothers and children held in these facilities has run rampant. The family detention scheme has grown increasingly controversial not only because it has failed to provide safe and humane conditions for mothers and children, but also… Read More
“Baby Jails” Bills Die a Slow Death
As the legislative session in Texas drew to a close on Monday, immigration advocates around the country celebrated the death of the “baby jails” bill—a measure that would have licensed Texas family detention centers as “child-care facilities.” Senate Bill 1018 was the latest attempt to lower state standards so… Read More
All gifts are matched dollar for dollar
No one should face the immigration system alone
