Biden reopens detention center for immigrant minors

The US law has a very protective structure when it comes to immigrant minors because they are often victims of abuse, violence, human trafficking, kidnapping, inter alia. Therefore, when border forces encounter unaccompanied immigrant minors trying to cross borders without legal documentation, they must remain in the custody of the ORR (Office of Refugee Resettlement), a branch of the HHS (Department of Health and Human Services), and should not be held in any other facility.

In 2019, the Trump administration opened a center for unaccompanied immigrant teens, which was open only for one month and sparked a gigantic social controversy. Now, two years later, the Biden administration reopened this facility located in Carrizo Springs, Texas. For now, this center has the capacity to house “up to 700 children ages 13 to 17.”

The current president of the US has always emphasized the need to improve the immigration system and protect the integrity of vulnerable populations, which is why the reopening of this center is unleashing a growing controversy among activists and immigrant rights advocates, who state that detaining minors contradicts the current administration’s proposals and the country’s values ​.

However, the Biden government declares that HHS, the entity in charge of protecting immigrant minors, is currently supervising this center. In addition to that, the current administration ensures that the reopening of this facility is nothing more than an emergency measure in the midst of the global pandemic because immigrant minors facilities have already reached their maximum capacity and the number of unaccompanied minors crossing the US borders is increasing disproportionately.

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The previous administration received countless criticism for detaining large numbers of immigrants

Many of former President Trump’s opinions, proposals, and actions sparked a gigantic social controversy among the American population, opposition groups, and members of the government. Immigration was one of those sectors that attracted constant public attention for the past four years.

In fact, immigration per se has always been a contentious issue in the US, mainly because the influx of immigrants is usually quite high due to the fact that the country offers a wide variety of alternatives for foreigners and opportunities to find job and economic stability, which is not the case in other countries.

However, Trump’s proposals and ideals regarding immigration fueled controversy as they increased division between communities that support stricter immigration measures and regulations, and communities that support more welcoming, fair, and humane ideals regarding immigration.

One of the aspects that generated uncertainty and doubts during the last four years was the way in which the Trump administration approached irregular immigration. In the opinion of the former president, immigrants who cross the borders without prior authorization are violating local law and, therefore, should not have opportunities to legally reside in the US.

As a result, the numbers of detention and deportation of undocumented immigrants increased considerably during Trump’s term, even amid the health crisis caused by the global Coronavirus pandemic. In fact, ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement) facilities reached their maximum capacity and the Trump administration had to sign contracts with private prison companies to detain undocumented foreigners.

Thus, the fact that the Biden administration is using resources from the previous administration is an alarming matter for activists and immigrant advocates.

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