migrant children

The Trump administration is trying to legalize indefinite detention of migrant families. But detention can be emotionally crushing for kids, leading to long-term mental health problems like PTSD.

A federal report shows that between 2015 and 2018 there were almost 6,000 reported complaints of sexual abuse at child migrant shelters nationwide. Documents show the non-profit Morrison Child and Family Services in Portland handled eight of those reports. Three of those incidents happened at other non-Morrison shelters the youth were previously at.

Over 12,000 immigrant teens are being held in shelters across the country. Record numbers continue to cross and the government is expanding shelter capacity to hold them.

Under the Flores settlement, immigrant minors can't be held in jail-like settings and can't be held for longer than 20 days. The government's move to circumvent that will likely end up in court.