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A billboard from Amnesty International USA in Homestead, Florida. (Photo: Amnesty International USA)
'We Don't Believe in Locking Up Children. Do You?' Amnesty Billboards Condemn Trump's Mass Detention of Migrant Kids
"World Children's Day is a day for children, yet children in this very country are denied their freedom. The Trump administration has detained children for the act of seeking safety."
Nov 19, 2019
Amnesty International USA marked World Children's Day on Wednesday by launching billboards in Florida condemning President Donald Trump's mass detention of migrant kids fleeing violence and persecution in their home countries.
A billboard that reads, "You are now 7 miles away from where kids are locked up" was positioned near a detention facility in Homestead, Florida. After visiting the facility in April and July of this year, Amnesty accused the U.S. government of detaining children indefinitely and in "cruel" conditions at Homestead.
Another billboard, erected just 10 miles away from Disney World in Orlando, poses a question to onlookers: "We don't believe in locking up children. Do you?"
The billboards direct viewers to TruthAboutHomestead.org, which outlines actions people can take to combat detention of migrant children.
A report by The Associated Press and PBS Frontline last week found that the U.S. detained nearly 70,000 migrant children in 2019--more than any other nation in the world.
An independent United Nations expert said this week that Trump's migration-related detention of children violated international law.
"World Children's Day is a day for children, yet children in this very country are denied their freedom," Margaret Huang, executive director of Amnesty International USA, said in a statement. "The Trump administration has detained children for the act of seeking safety."
"These kids should be with their families, their loved ones, and their communities, instead they are locked away in facilities like Homestead with no foreseeable end in sight," said Huang. "This World Children's Day, we have used our resources to open people's eyes to the truth so that they can take action for these kids' freedom. People can no longer say that they did not know."
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Amnesty International USA marked World Children's Day on Wednesday by launching billboards in Florida condemning President Donald Trump's mass detention of migrant kids fleeing violence and persecution in their home countries.
A billboard that reads, "You are now 7 miles away from where kids are locked up" was positioned near a detention facility in Homestead, Florida. After visiting the facility in April and July of this year, Amnesty accused the U.S. government of detaining children indefinitely and in "cruel" conditions at Homestead.
Another billboard, erected just 10 miles away from Disney World in Orlando, poses a question to onlookers: "We don't believe in locking up children. Do you?"
The billboards direct viewers to TruthAboutHomestead.org, which outlines actions people can take to combat detention of migrant children.
A report by The Associated Press and PBS Frontline last week found that the U.S. detained nearly 70,000 migrant children in 2019--more than any other nation in the world.
An independent United Nations expert said this week that Trump's migration-related detention of children violated international law.
"World Children's Day is a day for children, yet children in this very country are denied their freedom," Margaret Huang, executive director of Amnesty International USA, said in a statement. "The Trump administration has detained children for the act of seeking safety."
"These kids should be with their families, their loved ones, and their communities, instead they are locked away in facilities like Homestead with no foreseeable end in sight," said Huang. "This World Children's Day, we have used our resources to open people's eyes to the truth so that they can take action for these kids' freedom. People can no longer say that they did not know."
Amnesty International USA marked World Children's Day on Wednesday by launching billboards in Florida condemning President Donald Trump's mass detention of migrant kids fleeing violence and persecution in their home countries.
A billboard that reads, "You are now 7 miles away from where kids are locked up" was positioned near a detention facility in Homestead, Florida. After visiting the facility in April and July of this year, Amnesty accused the U.S. government of detaining children indefinitely and in "cruel" conditions at Homestead.
Another billboard, erected just 10 miles away from Disney World in Orlando, poses a question to onlookers: "We don't believe in locking up children. Do you?"
The billboards direct viewers to TruthAboutHomestead.org, which outlines actions people can take to combat detention of migrant children.
A report by The Associated Press and PBS Frontline last week found that the U.S. detained nearly 70,000 migrant children in 2019--more than any other nation in the world.
An independent United Nations expert said this week that Trump's migration-related detention of children violated international law.
"World Children's Day is a day for children, yet children in this very country are denied their freedom," Margaret Huang, executive director of Amnesty International USA, said in a statement. "The Trump administration has detained children for the act of seeking safety."
"These kids should be with their families, their loved ones, and their communities, instead they are locked away in facilities like Homestead with no foreseeable end in sight," said Huang. "This World Children's Day, we have used our resources to open people's eyes to the truth so that they can take action for these kids' freedom. People can no longer say that they did not know."
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