Why Families Are Being Torn Apart At The U.S. Border — And What You Can Do About It

In May, the Trump administration reported a new policy: one of separating migrant families who seek asylum at the U.S. Border. This shows, very simply, that as soon as parents arrive at the border, their children — who can't be taken with them as they await prosecution for against the law entry" beyond bars — are taken away to a separate facility.


It's been happening since long before May, though. More than 2,400 immigrant families have reportedly been separated since late 2016; the Trump administration's recent announcement has simply made it official policy.


In the past few weeks, harrowing photos and stories of families dealing with the emotional cost of being pulled apart at the border have flooded social media. These helped kick off a round of protests across the nation as on Thursday (June 14). It looks like this may just be the starting. Here's why — and here's what you could do to help.

1. 
   
   Why are families being separated?
   
   
   John Moore/Getty Images
   
   
   
   as the Trump administration's tough anti-immigration policies have taken aim at those entering the U.S. Illegally, adults who cross the border are usually sent to jail to wait on federal prosecution. The separation happens because they can't keep their children with them beyond bars. "If you are smuggling a child, then we'll prosecute you and that child will be separated from you as required by law," Attorney General Jeff Sessions mentioned last month, via Vox.
   
   
   
   
   



2. 
   
   But where do the children go?
   
   
   
   
   
   As MSNBC's Jacob Soboroff reported from a child detention center in Texas, "Effectively, these kids are incarcerated." These government facilities are meant to be short-term, though they're already terribly overcrowded. Soboroff's visit to a former Walmart, right now used to home kids separated from their parents, revealed rooms designed for four people in each; several have ballooned to five.
   
   
   
   
   



3. 
   
   What's next for them?
   
   
   John Moore/Getty Images
   
   
   
   GOP leaders have proposed a bill that would ban the Trump administration from separating families going forward — yet the president has already said he definitely wouldn't sign" it. In the meantime, a "tent city" is being built in Texas to residence nearly 500 migrant children as soon as they await reunion with their families.
   
   
   
   
   



4. 
   
   What can you do to help?
   
   
   Scott Olson/Getty Images
   
   
   
   This week, activists across the U.S. Marched to protest the policy as an extension of a movement called Families Belong Together. You could sign a petition to end family member separation at their website and stay informed on their upcoming local organized events. And, obviously, you could (and should) register to vote ahead of this November's midterm elections.
   
   
   
   
   

To learn more about how you could will assist immigrant families, visit unitedwedream.Org.