U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas speaks during a White House press briefing on March 1, 2021.
The recent influx of illegal immigrants to the U.S. southern border has resulted in a “record number” of unaccompanied children in border detention centers. According to U.S. media, these children are facing hunger, overcrowding and fear, and their survival is in jeopardy. The Biden administration announced on Saturday (13) that it had sent Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) officials to the border to respond.
On Saturday, the Biden Administration announced that it had directed FEMA to send personnel to the southwest border in response to the arrival of a “record number” of illegal immigrants and unaccompanied children.
On the same day, the Department of Homeland Security issued a statement saying it had asked FEMA to assist in the sheltering and relocation of illegal immigrants and unaccompanied children at the U.S.-Mexico border.
The statement said the Department of Homeland Security is working with the Department of health and Human Services (HHS) to transfer unaccompanied children at the border to HHS as soon as possible, but explained that the work is “very difficult” due to protocols and restrictions needed to protect public health and the children’s own health.
A U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) release shows that more than 100,000 illegal immigrants were detained at the U.S. southwest border in February, which is three times the number CBP enforced in February of last year. As many as 19,246 families crossed the border illegally this February, while the number of unaccompanied children was as high as 9,457, a significant increase compared to previous months, overwhelming the facilities used to house illegal immigrants at the border.
U.S. public opinion has begun to refer to the current influx of illegal immigrants at the U.S.-Mexico border as a “crisis,” and the Biden administration has called it a “huge challenge.
Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas also recently issued a statement urging immigrants not to risk trying to enter the United States illegally. He claimed that individuals caught at the border will continue to be denied entry and deported in order to effectively protect the health and safety of immigrants and communities from the Chinese Communist virus (COVID-19).
Since taking office, Biden has suspended the travel ban issued by former President Trump against terrorist-prone countries, suspended construction of the U.S.-Mexico border wall, and issued a new immigration package that has renewed signals of leniency, including a path to legalized citizenship for the approximately 11 million illegal immigrants already in the United States. This has encouraged a steady flow of illegal immigrants to the U.S.-Mexico border, leading to over capacity at border detention centers and a continued spike in the number of unaccompanied children.
According to publicly available information, as of March 8, U.S. Customs and Border Protection has detained more than 3,200 unaccompanied children, of which approximately 2,600 are awaiting placement in minors-appropriate shelters. However, due to the restrictive measures of the CCP virus Epidemic, there are only about 500 available beds. Public opinion is concerned that the Biden administration’s immigration policies could create a new humanitarian and public health crisis.
CBS reported on March 12 that a large number of children currently stranded in border detention centers are facing hunger, overcrowding, and fear, and are in dire straits.
According to the report, the attorney for a young immigrant detained by the U.S. government recently interviewed several children in a detention center in South Texas. The children, who were not accompanied by guardians, said they were not fed, lived in overcrowded conditions and were not allowed outside during the day, and could only see a little sunlight through the bathroom glass when they took a shower, which could take up to a week. The children were detained upon entering the United States, and their siblings were separated by gender, leaving the young children terrified.
The report also revealed that the detention center, which opened only last month, has been operating at over capacity, with sometimes 700 to 800 children being brought in daily. The lack of capacity at the refugee resettlement agency has resulted in the children being held in the detention center for far longer than the 72-hour legal limit, unable to be transferred to the refugee resettlement agency in a timely manner, and completely unable to meet the social distance needed to prevent and control the outbreak, with some children remaining in the detention center for more than 10 days.
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