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In the beginning of June, President Obama and Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Jeh Johnson designated the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to coordinate the federal response to the humanitarian situation at the border to care for the needs of the migrant population. FEMA assisted the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to secure temporary shelters for children, and DHS opened facilities to detain and process adults with children.
These were some of the initial responses recently described by the Obama Administration to an immigration crisis in which, according to DHS estimates, more than 50,000 unaccompanied minors have crossed the border since October 2013.
Children and adults traveling with children who survive a dangerous journey from Central America -- at the hands of smugglers -- will be taken care of while they are in Customs and Border Protection (CBP) custody, and will be returned if no legal relief or protection is applicable to their case, the White House says.
CBP instituted the use of its processing center in Nogales, AZ and recently opened a 1,000-bed processing center in McAllen, TX to handle the rise in unaccompanied children apprehended in the Rio Grande Valley. CBP “surged” 265 border patrol agents from less active sectors to the Rio Grande Valley to manage increased apprehensions in the sector and bolster detection and interdiction efforts.
DHS launched the Dangers Awareness Campaign, a Spanish language outreach effort and a call to action to community groups, the media, parents and relatives in the U.S. and Central America to not put the lives of children at risk by attempting to illegally cross the southwest border.
The Department of Justice (DOJ) is also redoubling efforts to work with Mexican authorities to apprehend smugglers aiding unaccompanied minors in crossing the southwest border. Working with the Department of State, DOJ is also providing support and training in Central America to help address the root causes of migration, and is redoubling efforts to work with other federal agencies and the Mexican government to investigate and prosecute those who smuggle migrants to the U.S.
HHS cares for unaccompanied children until they can be released with sponsors, typically family members, who can safely and appropriately care for them while their immigration case is processed, the White House says. So far this year, HHS has cared for nearly 54,000 children -- more than 2.75 times the number cared for over the same period last year.
To respond to the sharp increase in the number of children needing care, HHS has increased the number of children it can shelter at any one time in its standard facilities by almost 2,200 since January. Additionally, HHS has taken steps to reduce the length of time children stay in shelters while ensuring that children are only released to sponsors who can care for them safely. The average length of time a child remains in HHS care has fallen by more than half since 2011, and today a substantial share of children are placed with sponsors in less than three weeks.
The Administration is working with Central American partners and Mexico to get the word out to deter migration; improve the ability of Mexico and Guatemala to interdict migrants; enhance the Centrals’ ability to receive and reintegrate repatriated migrants; and address the underlying causes of migration.
On July 25, President Obama met with President Perez Molina of Guatemala, President Hernandez of Honduras, and President Sanchez Ceren of El Salvador to discuss how the U.S. and Central American governments are cooperating to disrupt smuggling organizations and promote safe, legal, and orderly migration. The leaders also discussed how they can work together with other members of the international community to accelerate development, economic growth, and security improvements in the region and address the systemic factors that are causing Central American citizens to undertake the dangerous journey to the U.S., the White House said.
http://www.gsnmagazine.com/
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