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Children and parents protested the Trump administration's separation of families on Capitol Hill on Thursday. (Photo: Win McNamee/Getty Images)
With More Than 700 Children Still Separated, Immigrant Rights Groups Decry Trump Officials' Claim That Reunification Deadline Was Met
"Not even close, and that's if you believe their number."
Jul 27, 2018
Immigrant rights advocates are repudiating the praise that some in the corporate media have heaped on the Trump administration for reuniting some families, as hundreds of children remained apart from their parents on Friday--a day after the court-ordered deadline for reunifying every family torn apart by President Donald Trump's "zero tolerance" immigration policy.
\u201cDear @bbcworld, This front page blurb is incorrect. The Trump administration actually FAILED to meet the deadline. They are still keeping hundreds of children separated from their families (as your own article makes clear). The trauma goes on: https://t.co/fuCAfTYv1J\u201d— Andrew Stroehlein (@Andrew Stroehlein) 1532670259
The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), which filed a federal lawsuit challenging the policy and the practice of separating families at the U.S.-Mexico border, rejected headlines like the one used by the New York Times in its Thursday report: "Federal Authorities Say They Have Met Deadline to Reunite Migrant Families."
"The only deadline they are meeting is the one they have set for themselves," Lee Gelernt, lead counsel for the ACLU, told the Times. "The government should not be getting applause for cleaning up their own mess, but moreover, they're still not meeting the deadline for all the families."
More than 700 children were not reunited with their parents as of Thursday at 6:00pm, the official deadline given to the Trump administration by U.S. District Court Judge Dana Sabraw in June. More than 430 of those children's parents have been deported, many to countries that families left in order to flee violence. If reuniting those families is possible, officials will need to send the children back to those countries as well.
The political action group People for Bernie also reminded observers that after lying about whether there was a family separation policy at all--and claiming that Democrats were to blame for more than 2,500 children being scattered across the country in detention facilities, with little to no contact with their parents--the administration's report that it has returned about 1,400 children is not necessarily to be be believed.
\u201cNot even close, and that's if you believe their number.\u201d— People for Bernie (@People for Bernie) 1532644854
Vanita Gupta, president of the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, was among the rights advocates who expressed outrage over the administration's failure to meet its obligations after separating the families.
\u201cThe deadline is here. 700+ children are still in government custody, unable to be reunited with their parents any time soon. They're suffering trauma as a result of this administration's cruelty & incompetence. This is unacceptable. #FamiliesBelongTogether https://t.co/y49OktqSlH\u201d— Vanita Gupta (@Vanita Gupta) 1532656991
Others on social media, including journalists, also urged news outlets to recognize the plights of the 711 children who are still without their parents due to the actions of the Trump administration --and not treat the border crisis as one that has remotely been resolved.
\u201cTo be super clear: just over half of separated kids have been reunited by the deadline to reunite them all. \n\nThe administration is declaring victory, saying zero eligible are left in ICE custody.\n\nThat ignores 711 other kids.\n\nLatest, with @JuliaEAinsley. https://t.co/0NDS40KGR3\u201d— Jacob Soboroff (@Jacob Soboroff) 1532645675
\u201cToday is the court-imposed deadline for the Trump administration to reunite children with their families. They missed it. This will go down as a shameful chapter in American history.\u201d— Senator Jeff Merkley (@Senator Jeff Merkley) 1532650255
\u201cThe U.S. government is supposed to be the most powerful in the world, and today they have shown the worst of weaknesses-- total disregard for the wellbeing of children as they missed the deadline to reunite all children they ripped apart. #ReuniteEveryChild\u201d— Julissa Natzely Arce Raya (@Julissa Natzely Arce Raya) 1532647734
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Immigrant rights advocates are repudiating the praise that some in the corporate media have heaped on the Trump administration for reuniting some families, as hundreds of children remained apart from their parents on Friday--a day after the court-ordered deadline for reunifying every family torn apart by President Donald Trump's "zero tolerance" immigration policy.
\u201cDear @bbcworld, This front page blurb is incorrect. The Trump administration actually FAILED to meet the deadline. They are still keeping hundreds of children separated from their families (as your own article makes clear). The trauma goes on: https://t.co/fuCAfTYv1J\u201d— Andrew Stroehlein (@Andrew Stroehlein) 1532670259
The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), which filed a federal lawsuit challenging the policy and the practice of separating families at the U.S.-Mexico border, rejected headlines like the one used by the New York Times in its Thursday report: "Federal Authorities Say They Have Met Deadline to Reunite Migrant Families."
"The only deadline they are meeting is the one they have set for themselves," Lee Gelernt, lead counsel for the ACLU, told the Times. "The government should not be getting applause for cleaning up their own mess, but moreover, they're still not meeting the deadline for all the families."
More than 700 children were not reunited with their parents as of Thursday at 6:00pm, the official deadline given to the Trump administration by U.S. District Court Judge Dana Sabraw in June. More than 430 of those children's parents have been deported, many to countries that families left in order to flee violence. If reuniting those families is possible, officials will need to send the children back to those countries as well.
The political action group People for Bernie also reminded observers that after lying about whether there was a family separation policy at all--and claiming that Democrats were to blame for more than 2,500 children being scattered across the country in detention facilities, with little to no contact with their parents--the administration's report that it has returned about 1,400 children is not necessarily to be be believed.
\u201cNot even close, and that's if you believe their number.\u201d— People for Bernie (@People for Bernie) 1532644854
Vanita Gupta, president of the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, was among the rights advocates who expressed outrage over the administration's failure to meet its obligations after separating the families.
\u201cThe deadline is here. 700+ children are still in government custody, unable to be reunited with their parents any time soon. They're suffering trauma as a result of this administration's cruelty & incompetence. This is unacceptable. #FamiliesBelongTogether https://t.co/y49OktqSlH\u201d— Vanita Gupta (@Vanita Gupta) 1532656991
Others on social media, including journalists, also urged news outlets to recognize the plights of the 711 children who are still without their parents due to the actions of the Trump administration --and not treat the border crisis as one that has remotely been resolved.
\u201cTo be super clear: just over half of separated kids have been reunited by the deadline to reunite them all. \n\nThe administration is declaring victory, saying zero eligible are left in ICE custody.\n\nThat ignores 711 other kids.\n\nLatest, with @JuliaEAinsley. https://t.co/0NDS40KGR3\u201d— Jacob Soboroff (@Jacob Soboroff) 1532645675
\u201cToday is the court-imposed deadline for the Trump administration to reunite children with their families. They missed it. This will go down as a shameful chapter in American history.\u201d— Senator Jeff Merkley (@Senator Jeff Merkley) 1532650255
\u201cThe U.S. government is supposed to be the most powerful in the world, and today they have shown the worst of weaknesses-- total disregard for the wellbeing of children as they missed the deadline to reunite all children they ripped apart. #ReuniteEveryChild\u201d— Julissa Natzely Arce Raya (@Julissa Natzely Arce Raya) 1532647734
Immigrant rights advocates are repudiating the praise that some in the corporate media have heaped on the Trump administration for reuniting some families, as hundreds of children remained apart from their parents on Friday--a day after the court-ordered deadline for reunifying every family torn apart by President Donald Trump's "zero tolerance" immigration policy.
\u201cDear @bbcworld, This front page blurb is incorrect. The Trump administration actually FAILED to meet the deadline. They are still keeping hundreds of children separated from their families (as your own article makes clear). The trauma goes on: https://t.co/fuCAfTYv1J\u201d— Andrew Stroehlein (@Andrew Stroehlein) 1532670259
The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), which filed a federal lawsuit challenging the policy and the practice of separating families at the U.S.-Mexico border, rejected headlines like the one used by the New York Times in its Thursday report: "Federal Authorities Say They Have Met Deadline to Reunite Migrant Families."
"The only deadline they are meeting is the one they have set for themselves," Lee Gelernt, lead counsel for the ACLU, told the Times. "The government should not be getting applause for cleaning up their own mess, but moreover, they're still not meeting the deadline for all the families."
More than 700 children were not reunited with their parents as of Thursday at 6:00pm, the official deadline given to the Trump administration by U.S. District Court Judge Dana Sabraw in June. More than 430 of those children's parents have been deported, many to countries that families left in order to flee violence. If reuniting those families is possible, officials will need to send the children back to those countries as well.
The political action group People for Bernie also reminded observers that after lying about whether there was a family separation policy at all--and claiming that Democrats were to blame for more than 2,500 children being scattered across the country in detention facilities, with little to no contact with their parents--the administration's report that it has returned about 1,400 children is not necessarily to be be believed.
\u201cNot even close, and that's if you believe their number.\u201d— People for Bernie (@People for Bernie) 1532644854
Vanita Gupta, president of the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, was among the rights advocates who expressed outrage over the administration's failure to meet its obligations after separating the families.
\u201cThe deadline is here. 700+ children are still in government custody, unable to be reunited with their parents any time soon. They're suffering trauma as a result of this administration's cruelty & incompetence. This is unacceptable. #FamiliesBelongTogether https://t.co/y49OktqSlH\u201d— Vanita Gupta (@Vanita Gupta) 1532656991
Others on social media, including journalists, also urged news outlets to recognize the plights of the 711 children who are still without their parents due to the actions of the Trump administration --and not treat the border crisis as one that has remotely been resolved.
\u201cTo be super clear: just over half of separated kids have been reunited by the deadline to reunite them all. \n\nThe administration is declaring victory, saying zero eligible are left in ICE custody.\n\nThat ignores 711 other kids.\n\nLatest, with @JuliaEAinsley. https://t.co/0NDS40KGR3\u201d— Jacob Soboroff (@Jacob Soboroff) 1532645675
\u201cToday is the court-imposed deadline for the Trump administration to reunite children with their families. They missed it. This will go down as a shameful chapter in American history.\u201d— Senator Jeff Merkley (@Senator Jeff Merkley) 1532650255
\u201cThe U.S. government is supposed to be the most powerful in the world, and today they have shown the worst of weaknesses-- total disregard for the wellbeing of children as they missed the deadline to reunite all children they ripped apart. #ReuniteEveryChild\u201d— Julissa Natzely Arce Raya (@Julissa Natzely Arce Raya) 1532647734
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