Trump administration plans to remove nearly 700 unaccompanied migrant children, senator says
WASHINGTON The Trump administration is planning to remove nearly Guatemalan children who had come to the U S without their parents according to a letter sent Friday by Sen Ron Wyden of Oregon The removals would violate the Office of Refugee Resettlement s child welfare mandate and this country s long-established obligation to these children Wyden reported Angie Salazar acting director of the office within the Department of Wellbeing and Human Services that is responsible for migrant children who arrive in the U S alone Unaccompanied children are selected of the greater part vulnerable children entrusted to the administration s care the Democratic senator wrote asking for the deportation plans to be terminated In a large number of cases these children and their families have had to make the unthinkable choice to face danger and separation in search of safety Related Articles Trump s new CDC chief A Washington wellbeing insider with a libertarian streak Trump admin cancels million for offshore wind projects as attacks on reeling industry continue US revokes visas of Palestinian representatives ahead of UN General Assembly Judges defense lawyers and grand jurors poke holes in cases from Trump s DC federal intervention Trump administration tells states to remove references to gender ideology from sex ed materials Quoting unidentified whistleblowers Wyden s letter mentioned children who do not have a parent or legal guardian as a sponsor or who don t have an asylum scenario already underway will be forcibly removed from the country It is another step in the Trump administration s sweeping immigration enforcement efforts which include plans to surge officers to Chicago for an immigration crackdown ramping up deportations and ending protections for people who have had permission to live and work in the United States The White House and the Department of Medical and Human Services did not instantly respond to requests for comment on the latest move which was first informed by CNN The Guatemalan governing body declined to comment This move threatens to separate children from their families lawyers and assistance systems to thrust them back into the very conditions they are seeking refuge from and to disappear vulnerable children beyond the reach of American law and oversight Wyden s letter says Due to their young age and the trauma unaccompanied immigrant children have often experienced getting to the U S their medication is one of the most of sensitive issues in immigration Advocacy groups already have sued to ask courts to halt new Trump administration vetting procedures for unaccompanied children saying the changes are keeping families separated longer and are inhumane In July the head of Guatemala s immigration utility announced the cabinet was looking to repatriate unaccompanied minors who were being held in U S facilities The idea is to bring them back before they reach years old so that they are not taken to an adult detention center Guatemala Immigration Institute Director Danilo Rivera explained at the time He stated it would be done at Guatemala s expense and would be a form of voluntary return The plan was publicized by President Bernardo Ar valo who disclosed then that the cabinet had a moral and legal obligation to advocate for the children His comments came days after U S Homeland Precaution Secretary Kristi Noem visited Guatemala Migrant children traveling without their parents or guardians are handed over to the Office of Refugee Resettlement when they are encountered by agents along the U S -Mexico margin Once in the U S they often live in government-supervised shelters or with foster care families until they can be published to a sponsor usually a family member living in the country They can request asylum juvenile immigration status or visas for casualties of sexual exploitation Related Articles As Trump threatens more Guard troops in US cities here s what the law allows Chicago is in the Trump administration s sights for its next immigration crackdown Appeals court blocks Trump administration from ending legal protections for Venezuelans Abrego Garcia s lawyers worry he can t get a fair trial and request gag order for top US representatives Employers have used E-Verify for years ICE s arrest of a Maine police officer raises new questions The idea of repatriating such a large number of children to their home country raised concerns with activists who work with children navigating the immigration process We are outraged by the Trump administration s renewed assault on the rights of immigrant children disclosed Lindsay Toczylowski president and CEO of Immigrant Defenders Law Center We are not fooled by their attempt to mask these efforts as mere repatriations This is yet another calculated attempt to sever what little due process remains in the immigration system Gonzalez announced from McAllen Texas AP writers Sonia P rez D in Guatemala City and Tim Sullivan in Minneapolis 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