TAKE ACTION TO STOP THE SEPARATION OF IMMIGRANT FAMILIES

TAKE ACTION TO STOP THE SEPARATION OF IMMIGRANT FAMILIES

News reports this past weekend have highlighted a deeply troubling new U.S. “zero tolerance” policy that separates children from their parents at the U.S.-Mexico border. Families, many of whom are fleeing violence in Central America and seeking the asylum protections offered to them under U.S. law, are being divided as parents are charged criminally and children, labeled as “unaccompanied,” are transferred to the custody of the Department of Health and Human Services. This harsh policy, designed to deter families from seeking safety in the U.S., is already having long-term traumatic impacts on vulnerable children.

News reports this past weekend have highlighted a deeply troubling new U.S. “zero tolerance” policy that separates children from their parents at the U.S.-Mexico border. Families, many of whom are fleeing violence in Central America and seeking the asylum protections offered to them under U.S. law, are being divided as parents are charged criminally and children, labeled as “unaccompanied,” are transferred to the custody of the Department of Health and Human Services. This harsh policy, designed to deter families from seeking safety in the U.S., is already having long-term traumatic impacts on vulnerable children.

PETITION: Asylum Seeking Families Forcibly Separated at the Border

Insist that our government keep families together. Add your voice to those urging the Department of Justice to reverse their “zero tolerance” policy separating children from their parents.

 

Dear U.S. Department of Justice,

We are deeply concerned about your “zero tolerance” immigration policy, which pursues criminal charges against all immigrants without a visa attempting to enter the United States at the U.S.-Mexico border. This policy serves to criminally charge adults and subsequently separate them from their children. These children are then labeled as "unaccompanied" and turned over to the custody of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).

In every other administration, the U.S. Department of Justice has exercised prosecutorial discretion, criminally charging those entering improperly in some cases, but also taking into account the effect of such prosecutions on vulnerable children. The newly mandated policy has long-term traumatic effects on children as it separates families, who in many cases are merely seeking to avail themselves of the asylum protections offered to them by U.S. law. Because of the inhumane treatment of these children and adults, many of whom have legitimate asylum requests, we call upon the U.S. government to take the following actions:

- Rescind the "zero tolerance" policy that separates children from their families at the border.

- Ensure that those who are seeking asylum at the border or within the United States receive due process and respect.

- Resume a robust U.S. Refugee Resettlement Program for refugees from all over the world, including Central America.