Inside the search for the parents separated from children at the border wtvr.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from wtvr.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
It’s 10 p.m. Sunday, Jan. 17, in San Pedro Sula, Honduras, and 42-year-old Dora Melara is packing a bag. She grabs some clothes and important documents, and then makes some sandwiches.
In the morning, she will begin her search for a Honduran father who was separated from his teenage son at the U.S.-Mexico border in 2018. Their names are being withheld because the case is sensitive and still in legal limbo.
It’s unclear how long Melara may be away from home one night, perhaps more. She has learned that this work is unpredictable.
Melara is an attorney working for Justice in Motion, a U.S.-based nonprofit that has been tasked with trying to find and reunify families. They work in tandem with the American Civil Liberties Union and other immigrant advocacy organizations as part of a class-action lawsuit filed against the federal government in response to the Trump administration’s family separation policy. This week, the ACLU and the Biden administration agreed to enter settle
Close icon
Two crossed lines that form an X . It indicates a way to close an interaction, or dismiss a notification. David Xol-Cholom, of Guatemala, hugs his son Byron at Los Angeles International Airport as they reunite after being separated some 18 months earlier during the Trump administration s separation of immigrant families, Jan. 22, 2020. Ringo H.W. Chiu/AP
Long after the Trump administration s family separation policy was stopped, many parents have yet to be located. The Biden administration has inherited the effort.
Advocates look for clues and scour incomplete records. In the worst case scenario, a note might be as vague as José, sent back to Guatemala.