Immigrant Child Detention

Immigrant Child Detention

By Raphaela Carvalho

The pressing matter of keeping children of detained illegal immigrants in detention centers has sparked great concern from the majority of Americans who cannot sit back and watch innocent children fall victim. Removing children from their parents and scattering them throughout the country will certainly leave lasting scars, but there’s a group of American moms who have put themselves in their shoes and decided to do something about it.

In an article Sunday July 22 the San Diego Union reported on the conditions of detention of these separated children. “It’s surrounded by fencing that is backed by privacy netting, and a sign at the gate warns visitors that it’s under video surveillance 24 hours per day. If someone opens the front door of the facility without first swiping a badge, an alarm blares through the hallway, warning of a potential escape.”

It’s surrounded by fencing that is backed by privacy netting, and a sign at the gate warns visitors that it’s under video surveillance 24 hours per day. If someone opens the front door of the facility without first swiping a badge, an alarm blares through the hallway, warning of a potential escape.

Annie Correal of the New York Times reports “That a group of women is taking matters into their own hands. Julie Collazo of Queens, NY, launched a crowdfunding campaign to raise bail bonds for detained women. Her group is called the Immigrant Families Together and they call themselves ‘a network of Americans committed to rapid response unification of families separated by the ‘zero tolerance’ policy.’ To date, the group had posted bail for twelve women so that they could be reunified with their children. The toll of the separation is apparent in both the children and parents, and this group wants to see that no further damage arises beyond what’s already been done.”