Tell Congress: Do Not Expand Immigrant Detention

Congress will not resolve the crisis at our border with bills like the Keep Families Together and Enforce the Law Act (H.R. 6190, S. 3093). Instead of resolving the issue of family separation, it exchanges that practice with a different, but also heartbreaking one: family incarceration.

Under the Trump Administration's new "zero tolerance" policy, any immigrant adult who crosses the border illegally is charged with a crime. (If an immigrant is seeking asylum, they have the right to cross the border without a visa, and then go through a process that allows them to prove their plight rather than facing criminal charges.) This new law proposes that immigrant parents who have their children with them be placed into a "family detention," rather than a jail for adults only, so that their child is not separated from them.

Current child welfare law does not allow children to be kept in detention for more than 20 days. This proposal would change that law, allowing children to be jailed indefinitely.

Both separation and detention cause trauma for children. And there are much better solutions.

Previously, the U.S. has allowed for prosecutorial discretion, which let judges decide when asylum seekers, families, and vulnerable people could wait for their immigration hearings somewhere other than jail. Community-based alternatives to detention reunited immigrants with family members in the U.S., connected vulnerable people with faith-based hospitality in communities, and invested in family case management which helped people navigate the legal asylum system so their cases could be judged fairly. But since the “zero tolerance” policy was implemented, immigrant adults are being jailed instead.

We need humane immigration policy that keeps families together, protects access to asylum, and promotes alternatives to detention for all those seeking asylum.

Ask Congress to reject proposals to expand family detention and speak out against “zero tolerance” policy!

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Subject:

Please reject S. 3093 and expansions to family detention

Dear Official,

As a Christian and constituent, I am writing to express my concern about the administration’s “zero tolerance” policy that prosecutes parents, which has resulted in family separation and now proposals to expand family immigration detention. As Congress seeks solutions to the crisis at the border, I ask you to reject S. 3093 and other legislation that would change the law to allow children to be indefinitely detained. Family incarceration is not a solution to family separation.

S. 3093 would allow children to be jailed indefinitely, together with their parents, when their parent is placed in immigration proceedings. Due to the “zero tolerance” policy at the border, this applies to any immigrant family that crosses without a visa. Current child welfare law does not allow children to be kept in unlicensed detention or restrictive settings for more than 20 days -- this bill would change that law. The American Association of Pediatrics found that family detention facilities do not meet the basic standards for the care of children in residential settings and “no child should be in detention centers or separated from parents.” Family detention endangers children’s health and safety and cost millions of dollars to maintain.

Instead, we need humane immigration policy that keeps families together, protects access to asylum, and promotes alternatives to detention for all those seeking asylum.

Both family separation and detention cause lasting trauma for children, but those are not the only options. I urge you to advocate for non-restrictive, community-based alternatives to detention (ATDs) as the most appropriate response for families, children, and asylum seekers. Incarcerating families and young children in detention centers is unnecessary, costly, and harmful. Most families crossing the border do not pose a flight risk, and need not be funneled into detention or restrictive custody. Community-based ATDs effectively reunite individuals with family members currently living in the U.S., connect people with faith-based hospitality communities, or invest in family case management which helps people navigate the legal system.

I urge you to stand against S. 3093 and the expansion of family detention. Instead, I ask that you would support the effective alternatives to detention that reflect dignity and respect.

Regards, Your Name

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