As of today, at least seven children have died in U.S. immigration custody.
No matter whether you are conservative or liberal, no matter how important border security is to you, this news is unacceptable. Children are being separated from their parents and kept in crowded detention centers, left to sleep on concrete floors with foil blankets, and inadequate food and water. Many are reporting that they are not being given proper medical care or are unable to see a doctor due to overcrowding. Acting Director of Department of Homeland Security Kevin McAleenan admitted during a 2019 budget hearing that there are not enough pediatricians available to care for all the children currently in detention.
They, and their parents, are dying because of a misdemeanor, often committed while fleeing violence and desperate poverty.
Asylum seekers are being prosecuted for ‘illegal entry’ under section 1325(a) of the 8 United States Code, a federal misdemeanor. Other federal misdemeanors include cutting down your own Christmas tree without a permit or transporting prohibited fireworks across state lines. Can you imagine having your children taken from you and kept in such conditions, or possibly dying, because your purchased fireworks in Ohio and drove them to your family’s house in Indiana?
I am aware that ICE detention camps stem back to the Obama Administration. I understand the importance of border security and the need to know who enters and exits our country. However, the conditions of these camps are inhumane, regardless of who is held in them, and there is absolutely no reason why children should be dying of disease and thirst in 21st century America.
All children are precious, as are all human lives. To conservatives, I say this: you cannot say that you are pro-life, or that you believe all lives matter, if we do not care for the most vulnerable among us? If we do not defend the rights of others, how can we expect our own rights to be respected?
You can support secure borders and still be against the conditions of ICE detention centers. Please consider donating to organizations such as RAICES of Texas, who deliver needed hygiene products and other necessities to immigrants in detention, and advocate for bail for immigrants who are nonviolent, until they can attend their hearings.
Please also consider calling your state representative. ICE detention centers are not just located in the border states: Ohio alone has five detention centers. Together, we can make our voices heard for the vulnerable.
Charlotte Reith
Bowling Green
