Number of migrant children in US custody more than doubled in past two months, data shows
By Garance Burke, Juliet Linderman and Martha Mendoza
Published
The U.S.-Mexico border is seeing a surge of migrants.
The Biden administration is holding tens of thousands of asylum-seeking children in an opaque network of some 200 facilities that The Associated Press has learned spans two dozen states and includes five shelters with more than 1,000 children packed inside.
Confidential data obtained by the AP shows the number of migrant children in government custody more than doubled in the past two months, and this week the federal government was housing around 21,000 kids, from toddlers to teens. A facility at Fort Bliss, a U.S. Army post in El Paso, Texas, had more than 4,500 children as of Monday. Attorneys, advocates and mental health experts say that while some shelters are safe and provide adequate care, others are endangering children’s health and safety.
U.S. migrant children living in crowded shelters with little supervision Human Rights News
According to the Associated Press, the Biden administration is seeking ten thousand child asylums in an opaque network of 200 facilities in two dozen states and includes five shelters with more than 1,000 children inside.
Shows the amount of confidential data obtained by the AP migrant children it has doubled in government custody in the last two months, and this week the federal government has taken in about 21,000 children, ranging from young children to teenagers.
A Fort Bliss facility, a U.S. military post in El Paso, Texas, had more than 4,500 children as of Monday.
AP
May 11, 2021 10:55 AM ET
The Biden administration is holding tens of thousands of asylum-seeking children in an opaque network of some 200 facilities that The Associated Press has learned spans two dozen states and includes five shelters with more than 1,000 children packed inside.
Confidential data obtained by the AP shows the number of migrant children in government custody more than doubled in the past two months, and this week the federal government was housing around 21,000 kids, from toddlers to teens. A facility at Fort Bliss, a U.S. Army post in El Paso, Texas, had more than 4,500 children as of Monday. Attorneys, advocates and mental health experts say that while some shelters are safe and provide adequate care, others are endangering children’s health and safety.
An overcrowded Donna, Texas shelter for asylum seekers in April of 2021
Photo: ABC News
The Biden administration is holding tens of thousands of asylum-seeking children in an opaque network of some 200 facilities that The Associated Press has learned spans two dozen states and includes five shelters with more than 1,000 children packed inside.
Confidential data obtained by the AP shows the number of migrant children in government custody more than doubled in the past two months, and this week the federal government was housing around 21,000 kids, from toddlers to teens. A facility at Fort Bliss, a U.S. Army post in El Paso, Texas, had more than 4,500 children as of Monday. Attorneys, advocates and mental health experts say that while some shelters are safe and provide adequate care, others are endangering children’s health and safety.
Winnipeg Free Press By: Garance Burke, Juliet Linderman And Martha Mendoza, The Associated Press Posted:
Last Modified: 12:28 PM CDT Tuesday, May. 11, 2021 Save to Read Later
The Biden administration is holding tens of thousands of asylum-seeking children in an opaque network of some 200 facilities that The Associated Press has learned spans two dozen states and includes five shelters with more than 1,000 children packed inside.
FILE - In this March 30, 2021 file photo, minors lie inside a pod at the Donna Department of Homeland Security holding facility, the main detention center for unaccompanied children in the Rio Grande Valley run by U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), in Donna, Texas. The Biden administration is holding tens of thousands of asylum-seeking children in an opaque network of some 200 facilities that The Associated Press has now learned spans